On Thin Ice
by Trufreak89
Summary: Naomi Campbell lives for playing for the Hackney Hornets Ice Hockey team, but when her mum and stepdad relocate her to Bristol she has to face playing for a rival team, and trying to get on with their star player Katie Fitch, or giving up the game she loves.
1. Chapter 1

**On Thin Ice**

**Summary: **Naomi Campbell lives for playing for the Hackney Hornets Ice Hockey team, but when her mum and stepdad relocate her to Bristol she has to face playing for a rival team, and trying to get on with their star player Katie Fitch, or giving up the game she loves.

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Skins or anything related to the show.

**Rating: **M (Language, mild violence, adult situations etc)

**A/N: **So I told myself I couldn't write or post anything new until I finished a couple of fics because I have far too much on, but I'm excited for the new Ice Hockey season and this story just bit me once I started writing it; plus people have been asking me for more Kaomi fics so I've decided to post the first chapter to see if it's worthy carrying on.

**Pairings: **Katie/Naomi Effy/Emily

Naomi felt her lungs aching with the cold as she skidded to a stop. Her heart was racing, pounding against her chest from trying to evade the mob that was chasing her. Her legs had gone in to cramp and inside her gloves her fingers were numb. Her left wrist was throbbing and she was pretty certain it was broken, or at the very least fractured. Never the less she wouldn't let it stop her. She drew back the chunk of wood in her hands, her eyes narrowing on her target as she brought it crashing back down. The wood struck with a deafening crack just as one of her pursuers crashed in to the back of the blonde, tackling her and bringing her down hard on the ice. It was too late though, Naomi had already sent the little plastic puck flying across the ice and soaring towards the goal. The keeper mistimed it and dived too late, her gloved fingers missing it by centimetres as it flew over the line and crashed in to the corner of the net, setting the buzzer over the goal wailing and the crowd in the rink roaring.

A second later and the final buzzer went for the end of the game. They'd done it! The Hackney Hornets had won the game! Naomi felt her entire body go limp as she lay on the ice, tangled with the player who had brought her down. The tackle had been hard and had she not been wearing so much padding she might have broken something; though from the pain in her wrist and the numbness in her digits she was definitely sure she'd broken her wrist. "Mother fucker!" She heard the other player spit as she pulled herself up. She turned to see who had taken her down and wasn't surprised to find the redhead sitting on the ice behind her with a face like thunder.  
"Good game Fitch." She held her good hand out, offering to help the smaller girl up to her feet, but the Bristol Pirates' centre forward turned her nose up at the offered hand and got to her feet herself. "Fuck!" She cursed as her ankle gave way and she went crashing back down to the ice. It seemed she'd done more damage to herself than the blonde.

"Let me help-"  
"Just fuck off will you?" She growled as Naomi tried to help her up. Katie Fitch was known for her temper on the ice and losing the most important game of the season didn't exactly bring out the best in her. She shoved her and the blonde struggled to keep her balance as she glared at the other girl. Before she could say or do anything more two Bristol players skated over to them and pulled up in front of their injured player, averting a full on fight in the middle of the ice.  
"Easy, Killer." The tallest one, Effy, teased as she slipped an arm around the other girl's waist and helped her up. The other girl, another redhead, shot Naomi a begrudging smile as she took off one of her gloves and stuck out her hand. Naomi did the same. The other Fitch was a far better sport than her older twin. "Nice shot. Might want to work on the landing."  
"Thanks. Good game."

Emily nodded at her as she slipped her arm around her sister's waist and helped their centre forward carry her off the ice. The match had been a close one. Going in to the last third the Pirates had been winning 4-3, four goals of which were down to the Fitch twins, but in the last ten minutes of the match Naomi had scored the equaliser and had then gone on to score in the dying seconds, winning the game and putting the Hackney Hornets at the top of the league. It had been a gruelling match, with the Fitch twins ruthlessly checking her and anyone else who tried to get their hands on the puck. It had been a tackle from one of the twins that had damaged her wrist, but even the possibly broken bone had all been worth it in the end. For the second year in a row the Hackney Hornets had won the Women's English Ice Hockey Premier League.

The rest of her team were already over by their box, cheering and shouting as they celebrated their victory. Naomi skated over and was instantly mobbed by the girls and women she had been playing hockey with since she was fifteen. Their captain, a broad shouldered middle-aged Accountant, and their goaltender, a woman who worked in the Tesco near Naomi's college, hoisted her up on to their shoulders. She laughed, enjoying the moment and ignoring the pain in her wrist. The home crowd carried on roaring in celebration as Naomi was paraded around. She spotted her mum and her step dad Kieran sitting in the stalls and tried to ignore her mother's frantic waving and cheering. When she did eventually get off the ice it wasn't for long as they announced the top three players of the match and she was called first. She skated out in to the centre; doing a loop and waving at the crowd before heading back off. She passed Katie Fitch as her name was called second and paused as the girl smiled at her.

She stood watching her skate as she wrestled her helmet off with her one good hand. Her long platinum blonde hair was tied up and flattened to her head from wearing her helmet for so long. She frowned as Katie skated perfectly before coming back off the ice, her ankle apparently having made a miraculous recovery. "How's the ankle?" The blonde quizzed, receiving another smirk for her trouble.  
"Mine's fine." The other girl laughed as she pulled off her helmet, revealing her vibrant red hair. "Katie's isn't looking so good. Something about twisting it against your arse?"  
"If it's any consolation one of you did this." Naomi gingerly removed her glove to reveal a load of strapping around her rapidly swelling wrist.  
"Probably Killer." Emily chuckled as they fell in step towards the locker rooms. Katie Fitch's often ferocious checking and dubious tackles had earned her the nickname of 'Killer' and almost everyone in the league had suffered the tiny girl's wrath.

Despite their small stature the twins were impressive players. Their small frames meant they were quick and agile and that helped when they needed to break away to shoot. They both had decent shot records, though Katie scored a lot more goals. That was in part down to the fact that Emily played defence while Katie played attack. From what little Naomi knew of the twins their personalities apparently matched their positions. Katie was feisty and bitchy whereas Emily was quiet and reserved. The younger twin pulled off her sister's jersey as she reached the away team's locker room. She paused with her hand on the door and gave Naomi another smile. "See you next season Campbell."  
"Bring it Fitch." She shot her a wink and the smaller girl laughed, rolling her eyes at her. Everyone in the league knew the youngest Fitch was gay, most people tried to use it to psych her out, winking at her and blowing kisses before the start of a match or during a faceoff, but Emily was unfazed by it; her girlfriend didn't tend to take it so well though and had been known to do quite a bit of damage to her opponents for it. Of course body checking in Women's ice hockey was illegal, but refs didn't see everything and Effy Stonem could be quite devious when she set her mind to it. Between the pair of them Effy and Katie made a formidable offensive team.

When Naomi got to the home locker room she slumped on to the bench in front of her locker and gingerly pulled off her Nike Bauer skates, wriggling her toes to try and get some feeling back in to them. Next she stripped off her jersey and tried to push her shoulder pads over her head without putting too much pressure on her wrist. It took a while and a little help from her team mates, but she finally managed to remove all of her protective gear, shower, and change back in to her jeans and a nice warm hoody. The rest of the team were planning on going out on the town to celebrate their victory, but the only place Naomi was going was to the hospital. Her wrist was bruised and swollen and the pain was getting worse by the minute. Hefting her kit bag over her shoulder and carrying her stick in her good hand she made her way out of the arena and found her mum and Kieran waiting in the car park for her. They were in Kieran's old banger, a rust bucket of a car that only started when it wanted too and was quite frankly an embarrassment. Kieran took her kit bag from her and put it in the boot while Naomi climbed in the back.

"There's my little star!" Her mum grinned, practically glowing. She rarely went to the blonde's games, though she made an effort for special ones. Kieran had actually been the one to get Naomi in to ice hockey, though he was Irish he had spent time in Canada after finishing university and had adopted their national sport. He had played for an amateur Irish league though he had retired long before he'd met Gina and her stroppy teenage daughter. The three of them had gone ice skating one day and Naomi had been impressed with the Irish man's agility; normally he looked unsteady and bumbling on his feet, but Kieran's practically danced on the ice. They'd started going regularly and when Naomi had almost been expelled from her High School at fifteen he'd suggested she take up ice hockey as anger management. She'd been with the Hornets ever since.  
"Good game kiddo!" Kieran applauded her as he climbed in to the car and carefully closed the door; it had only been a week earlier that the door had fallen off its hinges after he'd slammed it.

Kieran wasn't the typical step father figure. He wasn't annoyingly perky or overly interfering in her life. He wasn't trying to replace her father. The Irishman was so laid back he was practically horizontal. A Politics teacher who had given up trying years ago, Kieran was a decent enough bloke and despite her initial misgivings Naomi had quickly warmed to him. Her mother had dated a long list of losers and Kieran was definitely the best of the bunch. The pair had been married the previous summer and Kieran had bribed Naomi in to wearing her bridesmaid dress with the promise of buying her the ice hockey stick she was holding in the back of the car. It was a light weight CCM stick, a more expensive version of the first stick he'd ever bought her. Over the three years she'd been playing she'd invested a lot in to her kit and had probably spent over a thousand pounds on her skates, sticks, jerseys and pads. "That last check looked a little rough. That little fucker is a tough one! It's the small ones you've got to watch out for though, like bloody whippets they are!"  
"Tell me about it, I think she broke my wrist." Naomi grumbled as she cradled her swollen wrist. Her mother instantly began fussing and the blonde had to use her good hand to slap her mother's probing hands away. "Can we just go to the hospital please? One of your herbal teas isn't going to fuck heal it is it?" She snapped; the pain and exhaustion overcoming her elation at scoring the winning goal.

Gina Campbell was something of an eco-warrior and political activist, and though Naomi had inherited her interest in politics and activism she didn't quite put so much faith in her mother's beliefs regarding herbal medicine and crystal divination and whatever other bollocks she believed in. Naomi would stick to the NHS and x-ray machines, rather than trying to discern if her wrist was broken from the soggy tea leaves at the bottom of a cup. The A&E department was as busy as any other London Hospital on a Friday night and Naomi found herself stuck in the waiting room on a hard plastic chair, sitting opposite a seven year old with a crayon and a plastic soldier shoved up his nose. After getting the crayon stuck up his nose the small boy had decided to send the soldier up to get it back. Naomi couldn't argue with the kid's reasoning, though his mother seemed less than impressed with him.

"Why couldn't you be a normal teenager and be here because you're drunk out of your tiny mind on cheap cider?" Kieran teased as he returned from the vending machine with three foam cups full of dirty water that was supposed to pass for coffee. With a little bit of manoeuvring he managed to hand one to Naomi without spilling the other two on himself.  
"Bad parenting?" She shot back with a smirk. "Jesus, I could murder a fag." She huffed as she glanced up at the white board above the reception desk that announced waiting times would be around two hours.  
"You can go half an hour without a death stick." Gina snapped as she put down a three year old magazine on Home Design and took one of the cups from Kieran. Naomi rolled her eyes at her, but she knew she was right. She seldom smoked during the ice hockey season anyway; it didn't do much for her speed on the ice. Still, sitting in the waiting room bored out of her skull she couldn't ignore her nicotine craving. Kieran offered a sympathetic smile as he held up a pack of nicotine replacement gum for her. Gina had been hassling him to quit for ages. She begrudgingly took one and slumped back in her chair as her mum went off to find a loo and Kieran pocketed his gum before slipping out for a cigarette. She couldn't imagine how the wait could be any worse until the automatic doors parted and a cursing redhead was pushed through in a wheelchair by her long suffering twin.

Naomi hastily snatched up one of the magazines her mother had been pawing through and held it up in front of her face, hoping the twins wouldn't notice her. Emily wasn't too bad, but she'd had quite enough of Katie 'Killer' Fitch for one night. She hadn't spotted the third member of the Pirates slip up beside her. "Nice game." Naomi almost jumped out of her skin as Effy Stonem's voice sounded beside her. The left winger had a reputation for stony silence during a game, which she often used to psyche out her opponents. Without her pads on she was half the size and Naomi was a little shocked that such a slight framed girl could bring down players twice her size. She didn't really seem the type who would be interested in sports, but then she'd only been playing for one season and Naomi guessed Emily had something to do with her taking up the sport. Effy was Emily's girlfriend and as the little redhead looked over from the reception desk she gave her a devoted smile; ignoring her sister's grumblings.  
"You too." Naomi put down the magazine, knowing the twins would follow Effy and she would have no choice but to acknowledge them. Despite playing against the Pirates for almost three years Naomi had never really engaged any of them in conversation, the teams tended to keep to themselves and she found herself struggling to make conversation.

They sat in silence until Emily pushed Katie's hospital wheelchair over to them. The oldest twin had a face like thunder and her arms crossed against her chest. She shot Naomi a filthy look. "This is your fault bitch!"  
"Katie!" Emily scorned in a tone that implied she was more than used to her sister's attitude, but Naomi could more than handle herself and cast her a sour look.  
"My fault? You do know body checking is illegal in women's hockey don't you?"  
"Oh I'm sorry, too rough for you Campbell? I'm sure there's a junior league you can join!" Katie replied caustically, riling the blonde even more. Her wrist was still throbbing and she was short on patience.  
"Ladies." Effy interjected, having more effect on Katie than her twin. "If we're going to be stuck here all night we might as well be civil." Katie grunted in response but didn't carry on with her verbal attack of the blonde and Naomi in return bit back her own retort.

"We could have just gone back to Bristol on the coach." Katie huffed half an hour later when they had all been sitting in relative silence. Effy and Emily were sharing one of the hard plastic chairs and apart from their interlocked hands they didn't really give off the impression of being a couple. Neither seemed big on big public displays of affection and Naomi could identify with that. She was a firm believer that a relationship was meant to be two people, not broadcast to the entire world to be scrutinized.  
"You couldn't get up the stairs with your leg." Effy pointed out without lifting her head from where it was perched on Emily's shoulder.  
"And you were moaning like a little bit-"

"Naomi Campbell?" A nurse called out, cutting Emily off. Naomi couldn't get out of her seat quick enough. She wasn't sure where her mum or Kieran had got to but she couldn't wait to get away from the oldest Fitch who was still glaring daggers at her.  
"Why does she get to go first? It's just a fucking swollen wrist!" Katie grumbled, her own foot propped up on of the seats and resembling a small purple brick. Naomi took some comfort in knowing Katie had come out worse from their skirmish on the ice.  
"If you see an Irish guy who looks a bit like a hobo or a blonde woman in sandals can you tell them I've gone in?" She asked Emily, who reassured her she would.

She followed the nurse in to one of the examination rooms and winced as the plump woman prodded and poked at her wrist, trying to bend it in ways that felt entirely unnatural to the blonde. Had she still had her hockey stick in her hand she would have been sorely tempted to thump it off the ignorant woman's head. As it was she had to grin and bear it as the woman carried on manhandling her poor swollen limb. Eventually she sent her to the X-ray department deeper in the bowls of the hospital and the blonde ended up roaming the corridors looking for any sign she was on the right path. After ten minutes of wandering she bumped in to Emily and Katie going up one of the endless corridors.  
"Lost?" Emily grinned in her usual pleasant way as Katie glared at her like she was the antichrist. "X-ray's this way." She nodded up ahead of her and Naomi fell in to step beside the wheelchair.

"Helloooo." Katie's face lit up as she caught sight of the attractive young male nurse behind the reception desk. She fluffed her hair up and adjusted her bra as they approached him. Naomi rolled her eyes at her, though she had to admit the oldest twin had quite an impressive chest on her. The low cut top she was wearing was quite a difference to her shoulder pads and team jersey. She let Katie go ahead of her, hoping to get rid of her quicker, and watched as she shamelessly flirted with the nurse. If she leant over any further she'd end up falling face first out of the wheelchair. After another forty minutes of waiting both girls were seen to and when their broken bones were confirmed they were sent to another department to get them plastered.

Emily parked Katie's wheelchair by another row of identical plastic chairs as Naomi took a seat on one of them. "I'm just going to check on Eff, text me when you're done yeah?" The younger twin pressed a kiss to her sister's cheek as she made her excuses to leave. Naomi felt her stomach drop at the thought of being left alone with Katie Fitch. They were the only ones waiting in the small drab windowless room and a heavy silence quickly descended on them. "So…" Naomi sighed when the awkward silence became unbearable. "Good job this was the last game of the season huh?" It was mid-June and the new season wouldn't start until September, they would both be nursing their broken bones over the summer and with a little luck would be ready to start practising again by August.  
"Yeah, that wrist won't help your aim any." Katie snipped.  
"Hey, my shots on goal record is better than yours!" Naomi snapped back, finding herself constantly on the defensive around the other girl.  
"You may take more _shots_ Campbell, but I score more _goals._" She replied smugly, rubbing it in Naomi's face that she was the top goal scorer in the league; while Naomi was behind her in a close second place.

Despite the throbbing pain in her wrist and the dull ache in her head Naomi laughed. She'd walked right in to that insult. "I'll give you that one, Fitch."  
"That last goal was a pretty impressive shot though." Katie conceded. "Two seconds faster and I would have had you though."  
"Yeah, you would have." Naomi nodded in agreement. "You and Emily are pretty light on your feet." They settled in to civil conversation as they were both on familiar ground; discussing the fastest game on earth. By the time they were both called in to be plastered they'd reach something of an amicable truce. Naomi received a short arm cast that immobilised her hand and wrist and came to a stop just below her elbow. For the outer fibreglass lining of the cast, which ensured it was waterproof, she had chosen a bright yellow colour that matched her Hornet's jersey. When Katie emerged with her cast on, sitting just below her knee and going right down to her toes, it was neon pink. They'd given her a pair of crutches, but she was still exhausted from the match and remained in the wheelchair. She pulled her phone out of her purse and tried to get hold of her twin.

"Fucking dykes." She growled as the phone rang and rang without Emily answering. She was obviously off with Effy somewhere, leaving Katie stuck in the corridor of the plastering department.  
"Want a push?" Naomi offered, expecting the smaller girl to bite her head off. Katie surprised her by sighing and nodding. It was the early hours of Saturday morning and both girls were tired from their game and the long wait in the hospital.  
"Can you manage with your claw?" Despite her words Katie's tone was a little friendlier as she scrutinised the blonde's heavily plastered hand.  
"Sure, just help steer with your foot, the good one, not your clubfoot." Naomi teased back, earning a smirk from the other girl. Between them they managed to manoeuvre their way back to the reception of the A&E department. Once they got there they found Emily and Effy curled up on one of the benches, fast asleep.

"Wake up bitch!" Katie snapped as Naomi parked her in front of them. Emily's eyes snapped open and she glared at her twin for a moment before remembering where she was.  
"Sorry Kay, you ready to go?" She rubbed at her eyes as she sat up and peeled herself off her girlfriend.  
"I need these pills, and try not to fall asleep on your way back." The older twin grumbled as she thrust her prescription at Emily. Effy took it from her with an easy smile before snatching Naomi's out of her hand too.  
"Come on Ems, I'm sure we can think of a way to keep ourselves awake." Emily giggled as she took her girlfriend's hand and followed her towards the pharmacy down the hall.

Naomi glanced around the waiting area but couldn't spot her mum or Kieran. She'd left her mobile in the car so couldn't even ring one of them to find out where they'd got to. She'd go in search of them when Effy brought her painkillers back for her. Getting rid of the ache in her wrist was her priority. "Pass your arm." Katie demanded out of nowhere and the blonde frowned at her.  
"What for?" They might have spent an hour chatting but that didn't mean Naomi had forgotten just who was responsible for her broken wrist in the first place.  
"Just do it." Katie snapped and against her better judgement the other girl scooted along the bench gingerly slipped her arm out of its sling. Katie pulled out a pen from her purse and began writing on her cast. "There, first signing." Naomi couldn't help but grin at the girly handwriting along the length of her cast where Katie had written: _'Catch you next season. Killer x.'_

She took the pen from the smaller girl, thankfully she wasn't left handed so could still write with her good wrist, and scrawled '_Practise staying on your feet ;) Campbell x.'  
_"Bitch." Katie laughed as she took her pen back. "We're going to take that cup next year you know."  
"Bring it." Naomi repeated her earlier taunt to the youngest twin as she saw the other two approaching them. Effy handed over her pills and the blonde helped herself to two of them, swallowing them without water.

"I booked us a room in a Travel Lodge while you were getting plastered. Mum gave me her credit card number. You've got to phone her first thing." Emily explained as she took the break off Katie's wheelchair and the four of them headed towards the door.  
"If we're sharing a room you two better keep your hands to yourself!" Katie chided, back to her usual charming self. Once they reached the car park Naomi spotted Kieran puffing away on a cigarette beside their car while her mother sat sound asleep in the front seat, her mouth hanging open as she snored her head off. It wasn't a pretty sight.  
"This is me." She nodded towards Kieran who gave her a half-hearted wave. "I guess I'll see you guys in September."  
"That should give you enough time to heal so Katie here can break something else." Effy smirked, earning yet another glare from the oldest twin.  
"Looking forward to it already." Naomi joked. She waved with her good hand as she walked over to meet Kieran. He took one final drag on his cigarette before dropping it to the floor and stumping it out with his shoe.

"That the girls from Bristol?" He quizzed, watching as Effy and Emily struggled to help Katie in to a waiting taxi with her crutches.  
"Yeah, their Centre broke her ankle when she took me down on that last shot."  
"Nice girl." Kieran mused, knowing full well his stepdaughter was not exactly a people person. Naomi had few friends outside of the ice rink and she liked it that way. Teenage girls were too much hard work with all the bickering and bitching. "Bristol's team aren't too bad."  
"Yeah they've got some good players I suppose." Naomi shrugged. It wasn't like Kieran to try and force small talk.  
"Naomi-" He started but fell silent without finishing. "Never mind, let's get you home." He opened the rear door for her to climb in to the car. The blonde couldn't help but feel there was something he wanted to get off his chest, but he made no further attempts to talk to her on the ride home.

He roused her mother when they pulled up outside their two bedroom house and she fussed over Naomi and her cast all the way in to the house. "Have you taken your tablets luv? Do you want some tea? How about a sandwich?"  
"I just want to go to bed mum." She let out a yawn, the long night finally catching up on her. She was grateful it was the weekend, she still had a few weeks left at college before the summer break but most of her exams were out of the way so she could spend her weekend sleeping.  
"Ok luv, Kieran and I are going out tomorrow, I'll just leave you sleeping, ok?"  
"Ok, 'night guys." She didn't bother asking where they were going and went straight upstairs to her room. She stripped off her clothes and climbed in to her bed, sinking in to the pillow as she pulled the duvet up to her chin. Despite the pain in her wrist she went out like a light.

When she woke up it was late in the afternoon and the sun was already hanging low in the sky, casting shadows across her bedroom walls. She grunted as she tried to move her arm. It felt stiff and heavy in the restrictive cast and the pain had increased tenfold. She pulled on a pair of sweatpants and a zip up hoodie to lounge around in and put her arm in its sling to give it some support. "Mum?" She called out as she descended the stairs and found the house eerily quiet for a Saturday afternoon. It was only as she walked in to the empty living room that she remembered Gina had mentioned something about them going out. Making the most of having the house to herself she turned the television on to the music channels and turned the volume up high as she switched on her laptop. Leaving it to load up she padded barefoot in to the kitchen in search of her painkillers and some food.

Gina had left her some pasta in the fridge so she didn't have to mess about attempting to make anything for herself with only one hand. After swallowing two pills she shoved a can of coke in her pocket and carried the bowl of pasta in to the living room. She sat in the recliner by the window with her laptop on her knee and the bowl balanced on the arm of the chair, content in having a lazy Saturday. She logged on to her _Facebook_page, finding a ton of messages from her team mates wishing her a speedy recovery and revelling in her winning goal. She also had a friend request and when she checked it she was surprised to find it was from Emily Fitch. Accepting it, she clicked on her profile, indulging in a bit of Facebook lurking.

She smiled at her banner, a picture of The Detroit Red Wings. Her profile picture was of her, Effy and Katie on a night out and Katie was actually smiling. The three of them seemed really close and most of the posts on her wall were from the other two girls. Effy mostly sent her cryptic little messages that obviously meant something to the two of them and links to songs. With her curiosity getting the better of her Naomi clicked the link for Katie's profile. There was nothing to do with Ice Hockey on it, not even in her interests section. It was the typical teenage girl profile, declaring her love of cute boys, terrible pop songs and inane films. She had hundreds of friends added, most of which she had probably never spoken to in her life and her wall posts were all from guys hitting on her despite the fact that she was listed as being in a relationship with some guy called Danny. Apparently he was a player for the Bristol Rovers. Naomi wrinkled her nose. She couldn't stand football.

She was still looking at Katie's profile when her mum and Kieran came home. "She's nice luv, new friend?" Gina quizzed as she hovered over her shoulder and the blonde slammed the lid of her laptop down.  
"No, she's one of the Bristol players."  
"Oh, I didn't know you were friends with those girls…that's nice, isn't it nice Kieran?" The blonde began to grow suspicious at her mother's strained grin. Kieran shrugged in response, grumbling something Naomi couldn't quite catch.  
"What's going on?" She narrowed her eyes on her mother. Something was up; Gina Campbell was as transparent as a window. The older blonde looked to Kieran for support as she took his hand and turned her grin up even more, she looked like she was on ecstasy.  
"Well, the thing is, Kieran's been offered a new job for much better money. That's where we were, checking out the college…and looking at houses."

"Houses?" Naomi caught on to the word like a rabid dog. "Where the fuck is this job?" Gina looked to Kieran who once again mumbled something under his breath. Both blondes glared at him as he chickened out of answering. He knew Naomi's temper all too well and didn't want to be the one to break the news to her.  
"I said Bristol." He repeated louder and the blonde frowned at them.  
"And you'd be ok with him living in Bristol for most of the year?" She asked her mother, not quite processing what she was being told.  
"No luv, I'd be moving to Bristol…we all will."  
"What? Are you fucking joking? I'm not moving to Bristol! I've still got another year at college, and I've got the team and my mates and-"  
"Well you've already got friends there now, and you can join their team-"  
"No fucking way! I won't do it! I'm not moving to fucking _Bristol_!"  
_  
_Exasperated Gina turned to Kieran for help but he held his hands up in surrender. "Don't look at me. I told you she'd freak!" Gina scowled at him and did her best attempt at impersonating a proper parent.  
"Naomi Campbell you _are_moving to Bristol with us in September. You'll love Round View; it's a great college- Naomi!" She called after the stroppy teenager as she stormed out of the living room, slamming the front door as she made her escape to her safe haven.

The Ice Rink had become like a second home to Naomi and whenever she needed to think or cool down she would go skating. In her rush to get out of the house she'd forgotten her skates though and had to settle for a hire pair. The skates were clunky with dull blades and lived up to their less than affectionate nickname. "Why you putting on death whellies Campbell?" Diane, the coach of the Hackney Hornets worked full time at the rink as a marshal and skating instructor and let out a belly roar of laugh as she watched the blonde struggling to pull the boots on one handed. "Here." She batted her hand aside and pushed the cheap skates on to her feet one by one before tightening the plastic catches that buckled across the front. Naomi knew her feet would pay the price for wearing such inadequate skates, but she had no intention of going back for her own pair.

"Thanks." Naomi sniffled, trying to push back the tears that were threatening to fall again. She clenched her good fist, willing herself not to break down in front of the woman who had taught her how to play. She had a reputation for being a bit of a hard arse on the ice and Naomi didn't want to ruin that by crying and making a fool of herself. Diane saw right through her though and probed again as she helped the blonde to her feet and on to the ice.  
"Hand sore? That Fitch kid got you good."  
"Yeah, she did." Naomi mumbled and her gaze was glued to the ice as she started doing a slow lap of the rink with her coach at her side. Diane chastised her for it, she'd taught her well enough to know that a fundamental rule of ice skating was not to look down. Bending the head down put the body off centre and messed up the balance. The last thing Naomi needed was another fall on her wrist.

"What's going on with you Campbell? You're skating like a five year old and it has nothing to do with those crappy skates!"  
"Mum just told me we're moving in September…to Bristol." The blonde huffed as they started picking up speed and passing groups of kids clinging to the side.  
"You're seventeen; you could stay if you wanted to?"  
"I don't have a choice. I can't afford to stay here by myself; I'd need to get a job and I've still got a year of college so I wouldn't have time for training anyway…it's over. I'm done playing." The thought struck Naomi like a falling ton of bricks and she felt hot tears spilling out over her cheeks as she abruptly stopped. She let out a strangled cry which turned in to full on sobbing as Diane wrapped her arms around her.

"There, there luv. I know it'll be a change, but it doesn't mean you need to stop playing. Bristol's team aren't too shabby. I don't exactly want my best goal scorer joining another team, but you've got too much talent to waste it by just stopping. That hand should be as good as new by September-"  
"No." Naomi shook her head, her anger overcoming her. "I'm not playing for the fucking Bristol Pirates! The Hornets are _my _team! I'll go to Bristol, I'll be fucking miserable and I'll make sure mum is too, but I'm not playing for another hockey team!"


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N:**** So I've more or less finished my other Kaomi fic and I'm going to my first Ice Hockey game in ages in a couple of weeks when the new season starts so I've decided to crack on with this fic. Thanks to everyone who's reading and for all the comments. I used to live with an Ice Hockey player but, other than on NHL for my Xbox, I've never played it myself so I apologise in advance for any errors.  
**

"I can't fucking believe this!" Naomi snarled, earning a glare from her long suffering mother as they both heard the nurse tut under her breath at the teenager's language. "What? They fucked up the first cast and now they can't get this one off!" The original technician who had put Naomi's cast on had positioned her wrist wrong, causing the bone to heal and set wrong. They'd had to re-break the bone in order to set it right and as a result Naomi had had to suffer wearing a cast for the entire summer. She'd already been in a strop about moving, so she had been in an insufferable mood for the eight weeks she'd been wearing the cast. She'd barely spoken a word to Kieran or her mum; holding them both jointly responsible for ruining her life.

It was first day of September and once they were finished at the hospital they would be getting in to Kieran's clapped out old banger and attempting to drive the two hours to Bristol. That was if the incompetent nurse could even remove the plaster cast around Naomi's wrist. The saw had somehow become snagged on the material and as such half of the cast was cut open from her elbow down to her wrist, leaving her hand still encased in the plaster. The lower half of her arm had spent almost two months in plaster and Naomi wrinkled her nose at the smell of her arm. The first thing she would do when the cast was off would be to soak her arm in the sink in the corner of the room for at least an hour.

After another ten minutes of struggling the nurse eventually cut away the rest of the cast, freeing the blonde's wrist. "Finally." Naomi huffed as she got up from the chair she was sitting in and went straight to the sink. The water felt like heaven against her hot dry skin.  
"We could stop by the ice rink before we go if you want luv? See your friends?"  
"I saw them last night." Naomi snapped with her back still turned as she scrubbed at her hand and forearm. It had been the first training session of the new season the night before and though Naomi couldn't do much stick work with her cast on, she had joined them in skating drills. It had felt good to get back on the ice, but it had been bittersweet, knowing it would be the last time she would skate with her team. She hadn't changed her mind about hanging up her skates for good; she wouldn't play for another team. Snatching a handful of paper towels from the dispenser she dried her arm off. "Can we just go already?"

She stormed out of the room like a bear with a sore head with Gina chasing after her. "Naomi luv, just give the move a chance? You might like Bristol-" The younger blonde stopped dead in her tracks in the middle of the corridor and turned to face her mother with a glare.  
"I'm only going because I can't afford to get a place of my own… I hate you for making me move and as soon as I'm done with college I'm gone." With that she turned on her heels and carried on out towards the car park. When she threw herself down on to the backseat of Kieran's car she slammed the door behind her, almost taking it off its hinges. Gina quietly followed, having given up on trying to make peace with her daughter.  
"Easy kiddo, that thing's held on with rubber bands and a prayer!" Kieran grinned at her but was met with stony silence. "Oh, still not talking to me then?" Naomi turned her head to the side, ignoring him completely as she looked out of the window, watching the city pass her by as Kieran tried to find his way on to the M4.

Kieran and Gina had been making trips to and from the new house for a few weeks, slowly emptying their old house and filling the new one. Naomi hadn't gone with them. She hadn't seen the new house in Bristol and wasn't particularly fussed about seeing it either. As long as her bed was there waiting for her she'd be quite happy curling up on it in an empty room with her laptop. The drive there seemed to take forever because of the tense silence in the car, but she wasn't about to give in and make her mother's life any easier so she popped in her headphones and sat listening to her iPod until Kieran pulled up outside of a two-storey house on the corner of a street that looked like every other one they had been driving through. "What do you think then?" Gina probed as they piled out of the car and Naomi cast a scrutinizing gaze around her. The street was a long avenue, facing a small field with a few trees, with a road on the other side separating them from the neighbours opposite. The house itself looked bigger than their old house and the garden was a nice addition, but she wasn't about to admit that to her mother so she shrugged her shoulders.

"Let me show you inside!" The older blonde didn't let her daughter's foul mood get her down and she bounced up the garden path, ready to give Naomi the grand tour. Inside the hallway was small and narrow, but it led to a large open living room that already had their furniture from the old house in it, including Naomi's favourite ratty old chair perched by the window. "The kitchen's huge-"  
"Where's my room?"  
"Second one on the left upstairs." Gina sighed, knowing she wasn't getting anywhere with her stubborn daughter. "Give it a chance luv, you might like it here."  
"Fat chance." The younger blonde grumbled as she hefted her laptop bag over her shoulder and skulked off up the stairs. She found her room with ease. It already had her bed and wardrobe in it as well as the mountain of boxes that her stuff had been packed in to. The room was larger than her old one back home, with neutral beige walls and a black carpet. Her room was overlooking the corner with a window on two of the four walls, flooding the room with light. It was nice enough, but nowhere near enough to lift her sour mood.

Kicking off her trainers she flopped on to her bare bed and pulled her laptop out of her bag. It was early Monday evening and with nothing to do other than unpack she decided to waste some time online. She was due to start at Roundview College in the morning, something she wasn't looking forward to in the slightest. Despite playing a team sport for three years she wasn't exactly a people person. With her short temper and quick wit she often ended up alienating new people far too easily. Kieran would at least still be her politics teacher; which she supposed would be a good thing when she eventually started speaking to him again. Maybe by Christmas.

* * *

On the other side of Bristol, in a cheap club with overpriced watered down drinks, Katie Fitch sat in a boot, pressed between her footballer boyfriend and some bimbo blonde who had been drooling over Danny since they'd left the training field earlier that afternoon. She and her friends, who all looked like even cheaper clones of the blonde with their short skirts and orange tans, had attracted the attention of the lads of Bristol Rovers FC and had been invited along to a night out. Katie hadn't intended to go out. She had college in the morning and at seventeen her parents weren't big on her staying out all night drinking; not that she would ever admit to them that she went out to clubs. As far as her parents were concerned she was at Panda's with Effy and Emily.

Katie was a good five years younger than the women who were drooling over her boyfriend and his friends and despite Danny's flirtatious attitude and wandering hands she didn't have to worry about him straying. She was like a prime steak compared to the rump roast sitting around her. She felt her phone go off and frowned as she read the text from Emily_._

'Gone home for college, you know that place we have to be tomorrow at 8.30am?! Mum thinks you're staying at Effy's. Don't dare wake me up when you get in! xx'

She rolled her eyes, Emily had always been the cautious one of the two of them. As the oldest twin Katie had always been the one to take the lead. She'd been the first one of them to kiss a boy, the first to wear high heels and the first to drink; all in the same night. At thirteen she'd snuck off to the local park with a boy a few years older than her from school. They'd drank cheap cider and ended up kissing at the bottom of a slide. Emily had been furious with her when she'd rolled home drunk after their parents had gone to bed and thrown up in her mother's rose bushes. She'd been a dutiful sister and cleaned her up before putting her to bed, and Katie knew for a fact that whatever time she snuck in the house, and whatever state she was in, Emily would be there to cover for her. She typed out a quick response before she put her phone back in her purse.

_'Muff-muncher not with you tonight? Don't worry babes, I won't be out long xoxo.'_

As well as college in the morning the Bristol Pirates had their first training session in the evening and the one thing that tended to stop her binge drinking was when she was in training. For all Katie was very much a 'girly girl' her father was a fitness fanatic who owned a gym and had encouraged his children to take an active interest in sport. He'd bought the ice rink when they were fourteen and Katie had taken an interest in figure skating and had made Emily do it with her too; the hockey coach had spotted Katie taking out another skater, who kept getting in her way and ruining her routine, and had offered the twins a try out for the team. Katie had instantly loved the sport, it brought out her fierce competitive side.

Despite that she didn't like people knowing she played. She had been seeing Danny a few months and had no intention of telling him that she played Ice Hockey. She didn't want him thinking she was some kind of dyke. Dressed up to the nines with her hair curled, her make up on and a figure hugging dress, she looked a far sight from how she did in her hockey gear. She would die if Danny or any of his friends saw her in her hockey jersey. "Babe, why don't we go back to yours yeah?" She leant forward, flashing her ample assets at the striker as one of the blonde bimbos at the table asked to feel his muscles.  
"What? Oh, yeah…later babes." He held up his tensed muscle for the woman to touch and the others all started giggling and asking to have a feel. "You feel what you want ladies." He winked at one of them before he set off with his awful laugh. It sounded like a cross between a car back firing and a donkey being shot. Katie tried to hide her cringe. The bloke was lucky he was fit, because his laugh was horrendous and he was a shit football player. Katie's younger brother would do a better job in a match than Danny. He was decent enough eye candy though and he wasn't too bad in bed. At seventeen that was enough for Katie; it wasn't like she was looking for the father of her future children or anything.

She huffed as Danny carried on ignoring her in favour of the gaggle of giggling young women who were busy feeling his tiny muscles. As soon as something better came along she would dump his sorry arse. She looked around at some of his team mates, weighing up her options as she shot a cute brunette a smile on the way to the bar. She was pretty sure he was their goalkeeper. Goalkeepers' weren't usually her type, but he was cute enough. "Does your boyfriend know you're flirting with other men?" A brunette at the bar shot her a smirk as Katie walked up to her.  
"Does your _girlfriend_ know you're here?" Katie snapped back, unsure why Effy was in the sleazy club and not spending time with Emily. The two had been practically inseparable all summer. She had her answer as Cook emerged from the bathroom and hollered at her.  
"Katiekins!"

James Cook was a prize wanker and a bit of a sleaze. His hands dropped to Katie's arse as he tried to hug her and she slapped them away. "Fuck off Cook!"  
"Awww come on, where's the love Katie?" He leered at her, his eyes on her chest as usual. She crossed her arms over her chest, glaring between Cook and Effy.  
"Why aren't you with Ems?" She repeated her earlier question and watched as Effy picked up her drink and shrugged her slender shoulders.  
"She didn't want to come."  
"Yeah Red's being a party pooper." Cook laughed as he called the bar tender over and lined up four shots of tequila, offering one to each of the girls, keeping two for him. Katie shot a pointed look at Effy as she downed her shot. It was no secret that Cook had a thing for Effy. After all, Cook had a thing for any girl with a pulse, but he had a definite soft spot for Effy.

"Yeah, well we _have_ got college in the morning. I'm heading off, this place is fucking shite." She shot another glare at her so-called boyfriend, catching him ogling some chav with orange tan lines and fake tits. He was _definitely _gettingdumped. "You staying over Eff, or are you staying out with _Cook?_" He missed the dismissive tone in her voice, but Effy didn't. Finishing of her drink she linked her arm through Katie's and waved goodbye to a crest fallen Cook. No doubt he'd find some cheap girl to take home and fuck as a constellation prize. Outside the club they joined the relatively short taxi queue. Bristol City was hardly jumping on a Monday night and most of the clubs were empty.

"Since when do you go out drinking with Cook?" Katie didn't give up as Effy pulled out a cigarette from a box in her purse and sparked up. She took a long draw, filling her lungs and holding on to the smoke until she tilted her head up and released it in to the night air.  
"Since I fancied a drink and Emily didn't. We're not joined at the fucking hip."  
"Could have fooled me." Katie snorted as she wrinkled her nose and wafted the second hand smoke away. "You two fuckers have been all over each other all Summer! So spill, what's going on?"

"Mandy." Effy sighed as she finished her tab and flicked it aside. "She was eye-fucking Emily all last night in that club."  
"Please, like _you've_ got anything to worry about from Mandy. You're gorgeous babes and Ems loves you, besides Mandy's a bitch!"  
"Careful Katie, anyone might think I was turning you." Effy smirked at her, causing the smaller girl to sneer.  
"Ugh, I don't fucking thinks so! Emily's the vag-atarian in the family, not me!"  
"She's pretty good at it actually."  
"Ugh! Eff!" Katie covered her ears with her hands, horrified by her teasing. It was bad enough that she had to witness them getting off with each other most nights in the room she shared with Emily; she didn't want to think about what they got up to under the covers when the lights were off.

It was still relatively early by the time they got back to the Fitch house, though Katie's parents had already gone to bed. The whole house was in darkness and Katie had to use the light off her phone to fish her keys out of her purse. With practised ease she silently slipped her key in to the lock, intending to make a stealthy entrance in to the house. The key snagged halfway in the lock though and she cursed. Her dad had left the key in the lock on the other side. Emily usually took the key out when she knew Katie was coming home. She tried ringing her mobile, but Emily didn't pick up and their bedroom light didn't come on. She'd obviously fallen asleep. "Fuck." Katie cursed again as she slipped off her heels.  
"Drainpipe again?" Effy quizzed as she slipped off her own shoes and followed Katie's example by throwing them on top of the garage. Katie had been sneaking in and out of the house for years and could climb up the drain pipe and on to the garage with ease; even after half a bottle of vodka.

Once she was up she pushed open the window to the room she shared with her twin, it was always unlocked for such situations and with a bit of manoeuvring she managed to slip through the window. She knocked over a glass that Emily had put on the side table between their beds and the little redhead shot up at the sound of it thudding against the floor. Luckily it didn't smash so Katie didn't have to worry about stepping on glass as she dropped down from the window. "What time is it?" Emily growled as she picked up her phone to check. "Fucking midnight." She grumbled as she flopped back down on to her bed and pulled the duvet over her head.  
"Don't get your fucking knickers in a twist! I brought you a present." Katie smirked as Effy slipped gracefully through the window. Emily's eyes lit up as she pushed the blanket away and found Effy standing over her bed.  
"Room for a little one?" She smirked, already pulling her top of her head.

Emily scooted along in her single bed, making room for her girlfriend. Once Effy had stripped down to her underwear she climbed in beside her, her lips instantly seeking out the smaller girl's. "You're feet are freezing!" Emily giggled as they cuddled up together and Katie rolled her eyes at the as she changed for bed and climbed under the covers.  
"No funny business you two! I actually want some sleep tonight."  
"You sound wound up Katie. You should get laid more often…it works for me." Effy's teasing voice came from the other side of the dark room followed by an 'ow!' and annoying giggling. She knew better than to rise to Effy's teasing. Effy was a girl of few words, but when she did speak she didn't waste any. Her putdowns and comebacks weren't worth challenging, so instead she changed the conversation.

"Think we'll have anyone new at registration tomorrow?"  
"I hope so. We barely have enough players to make two lines as it is!" Emily's reply came out of the darkness. Until the season before last the Pirates had been last in the league, back then team had been full of older players and the old coach had refused to give any of the younger players like Katie and Emily any ice time. When Rob Fitch had taken over as coach most of the old players had left the team, leaving them with only seven players; Katie, Emily, Mandy, Pandora, two college girls and a woman from Rob's gym. They'd recruited a few new players for the start of the last season, but Ice Hockey wasn't particularly popular in the UK, and women's ice hockey was even less so. They needed more players and fresh blood if they were going to win the league. Katie definitely didn't want a repeat performance of their defeat at the hands of the Hornets.

"How's the ankle anyway?" Effy quizzed as though she had read the oldest twin's mind. Under the covers Katie twisted her ankle around, feeling a dull ache in the still sensitive soft tissue. The break had healed well, but the soft tissue damage had taken a while to mend and she'd only started skating again a couple of weeks earlier.  
"Fine." She huffed, not keen to dwell on her injury. For all she had been the one who'd tried to take Campbell out she still blamed the other girl for her ankle. She was looking forward to the start of the new season so they could thrash the hornets; and maybe take a cheap shot at Campbell's wrist if she got the chance. She'd love to wipe the smile off the blonde's face with a good sweep. She was determined the Pirates were going to take the top spot in the new season and neither the Hornet's, nor Campbell, would get in their way.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N:** **Sorry it's taken me so long to update, I'm usually better at keeping on top of my fics but work's been hectic lately and I haven't had time to write anything. The new Ice Hockey season's kicked off now though so watching my local teams should help keep me writing :)  
**

Katie sighed as she heard giggling from the other side of the room. She was used to putting up with Effy and her twin; the pair had been almost inseparable since they'd gotten together at New Year and as such Katie had grown accustomed to waking up to the sound of the two of them giggling from under the covers. "Knock it off!" She snapped as she snatched up one of her fluffy pink pillows and threw it at the bed on the other side of the room.  
"Oi!" Emily sat up and threw the pillow back at her. It missed the bed by a mile and knocked Katie's alarm clock off the nightstand.  
"Nice aim. That's why you play _defence_." She rolled her eyes as she pushed the bedcovers away and tossed the pillow back on to the bed behind her. "I'm going in the shower. Just make sure you two muff munchers aren't up to anything when I get back!"  
"Don't use all the hot water!" Emily snapped, only half paying attention as Effy was already kissing the side of her neck, and Katie didn't want to _think _about where her hands were.  
"It's ok Ems; we'll save water and shower together." Effy smirked as she watched Katie twist her face at them.  
"Eugh, fucking dykes…" She opened the bedroom door and found her little brother kneeling in front of it. Glaring at him she kicked her foot out, catching the little twerp in the stomach. "Fucking perv!"

"I'm telling!" The youngest Fitch whined as he lay on the floor clutching his stomach.  
"Mum's at work, so unless you want another one, scram!" She drew her foot back to strike him again and he scrambled to his feet, knowing he'd be dead meat without their mother to cry to. Making her way in to the family bathroom Katie closed and locked the door behind her. Despite Emily's warning not to use all the water, Katie stood under the hot spray of the shower for as long as she could get away with. Her ankle was aching from the heels she'd been wearing the night before and the hot water beating down against it seemed to help. The cast had been off for weeks but the ankle was still giving her trouble; not that she would admit it to anyone. As the team's Centre Katie had to be quick on her feet, covering the entire length and breadth of the ice at once. The last thing she wanted was to be dropped from the first line, the players who got the most ice time, in favour of one of the halfwits that formed the second line. She was aiming to captain the team in the new season and she couldn't very well do that from the bench.

Her peace and quiet in the shower didn't last long as she heard Emily pounding on the bathroom door. "Hurry the fuck up, Katie! I don't want to be late!"  
"Give me a fucking minute!" She rolled her eyes as she hollered back at her. Taking a few extra minutes, just to piss her twin off even further, she eventually shut off the water and wrapped one of the large fluffy towels around herself.  
"About time!" Emily grumbled as she pushed past her to claim the shower. "Eff's gone home to get changed; we're meeting her at college in an _hour_!"  
"So hurry the fuck up and have a shower already, geez Ems, we'll be fucking late if you don't get a move on!" Katie just about supressed a smirk as Emily glared at her before slamming the bathroom door in her face. Winding her twin up was one of life's simple pleasures; one which she indulged in as often as she could.

Padding back in to the room they shared Katie pulled open her wardrobe, scrutinizing the variety of clothes inside. The wardrobe was split between her normal clothes for college, her going out gear, and her training jerseys. Few people in college even knew she played Ice Hockey, besides the other girls who were on the team, and that was the way she liked it. Emily coming out as gay had set tongues wagging about the older twin and the last thing Katie needed was for people to think she was some sort of less butch version of _Sporty Spice._

"Are you humming the Spice Girls?" Emily quizzed as she walked in to the room they shared and found Katie humming away to herself as she fussed over what she was going to wear. Katie ignored her as she carried on pulling out clothes and holding them up against her figure in front of the mirror.  
"Which one do you think?" She finally acknowledged her sister as she held up two skirts for her inspection. One was short with gold and black leopard print and the other was a slightly longer plain grey pencil skirt; it was also Emily's. She shook her head as she muttered a curse under her breath. Katie was always stealing her clothes.  
"Well if you don't want to look like a _prostitute_ for the first day of college then wear _my_ grey skirt."  
"Thanks Em. What are you wearing?" The oldest Fitch was completely oblivious to her sister's irritation. She shimmied in to the skirt, pulling it up over her thighs and doing up the zip at the side, before turning her attention to choosing a top to go with it.  
"Nothing. I'm going to college naked."  
"Uh huh." Emily rolled her eyes as Katie went back to ignoring her. The oldest twin pulled on a crisp white shirt and placed a thick gold chain around her neck, finishing the outfit off with plain black heels. She'd dyed her hair a deep purple over the summer and her long dark curls made her appear older than she actually was. It wasn't exactly new. Katie had been trying to pass for eighteen since her first year as a teenager. She'd been drinking for just as long. Checking herself in the mirror Katie frowned as she turned to find Emily still standing wrapped in a towel. "Hurry the fuck up, will you? We're going to be late!"

"Naomi! Get a move on! You've got five minutes before Kieran's leaving!" Naomi rolled her eyes at her mother's warning. It would take her step-father half an hour just to get the car door open without pulling it off its hinges. Slamming her bedroom door shut in reply she turned her attention back to her wardrobe. She stared at the clothes inside with disdain, as though they had suddenly sprung to life and started singing _Disney _songs to her. Though she wasn't really the kind of person to give a flying fuck what other people thought of her, she knew the importance of making the right first impression at a new school. If she wore something too revealing they'd brand her a slut inside five minutes. If she wore something too conservative she'd probably get talked about just as much, and if she turned up in one of her favourite ice hockey jerseys she'd no doubt hear the word 'dyke' within her first minute of steeping foot in a classroom.

She was wearing one of her old jerseys, a battered vintage Toronto Maple Leaves jersey that Kieran had generously given her a couple of years back. It was big and baggy and just about the only thing she would sleep in when it was cold. Naomi hated wearing pyjamas; she loathed the feeling of being restricted when she was sleeping, so the jersey was the perfect choice on colder evenings when her duvet alone couldn't keep her warm enough. "Naomi!" Gina called up to her again and the blonde frowned as she pulled a pair of grey skinny jeans and her faded white Smiths T-shirt. After tying her hair up she slipped her feet in to her purple converse and shrugged her short leather jacket over her shoulders. Happy enough with how she looked she opened her bedroom door just as her mother shouted her third warning up.  
"I'm not kidding Naomi! He's leaving in twenty seconds! Oh, there you are." Gina lost her frown as Naomi walked in to the kitchen. "Do you want some breakfast luv?" Naomi ignored her all together as she slipped past her and swiped an apple from the fruit bowl in the middle of the table.

"You ready then?" Kieran put down his paper and dusted the crumbs from his tie as her addressed the stroppy blonde. Naomi shot him a scowl before turning and walking back out of the door, heading to the rust bucket he called a car to wait for him. "I'll take that as a yes then…The Cardiff Devils are playing a home game next weekend, I might take her, see if it'll get her out of that huff of hers."  
"Don't you dare!" Gina warned. "She can get out of that strop the same way she got in to it! You buttering her up isn't going to help!" Kieran held his hands up in mock surrender as his wife lectured him. He found agreeing with her at all times on just about everything was the secret to a long and happy life. Once he was out in the car, after carefully prying open the driver's door and kicking the passenger door open for Naomi, he offered the younger blonde a conspiratorial smile as he pulled out two tickets from his inside jacket pocket.

"What are those?" She scowled at him, doing a good impression of her mother.  
"Oh, it speaks?" Kieran teased her with his big goofy grin still plastered to his face. "These, my learned friend, are tickets to see the Devils playing the Steelers next weekend, interested?"  
"Why, are you and mum moving us to Cardiff next?" Naomi deadpanned, refusing to be bought so easily. Kieran let out a heavy sigh as he slumped over the wheel.  
"Listen kiddo, I know you're angry, but go easy on your mum, yeah? She's trying to do her best for you and I was the one who took the sodding job. So ignore me all you want, just cut her some slack, ok?" He was met by the blonde's steely glare and he knew he might as well have been speaking to a brick wall. "Fine." He pocketed the tickets and attempted to start the car.

After a good ten minutes of trying the car finally lurched in to life and they made their way to the college in silence. Naomi watched the unfamiliar streets roll by. Bristol looked like every other city in the UK; drab and grey. She only spoke up once she spotted the sign over the open gates of Roundview College. The modern building dominated the skyline, looming in front of her like impending death. "I'll get out here. I'm not turning up on my first day in _this._"  
"Alright, alright, I'm not bloody stopping though. If I drive real slow can you just jump out?" He wasn't kidding. If he stopped he probably wouldn't be able to start the car again. Naomi wasn't about to jump out of a moving car though she he had no choice but to stop. They were early anyway so he had time to try and get the hunk of junk moving again. Hoisting her bag over her shoulder she slammed the car door behind her.

Roundview was one of those new colleges, the ones built mainly of glass that would be roasting in the summer months and freezing cold in the winter. There weren't many students milling about, which given how early Kieran had got them there, wasn't very surprising. Naomi pulled out the little paper map Kieran had given her and inspected the layout of the college, trying to identify which room her registration would be taken in as she made her way inside. She still had her head buried in the map as she slammed in to someone. Her converse didn't offer her much grip on the freshly buffed floor and she went flying back on to her arse. It had been her fault for not paying attention, but as she looked up at who she had bumped in to she felt her hackles rising.

"Fuck! Killer?" Naomi stared up in disbelief at the scowling Fitch towering over her. Of all the colleges in Bristol, she just had to find herself at Katie Fitch's. Her hair had been coloured a deep purple rather than the vibrant red she'd had it before the summer and the form fitting skirt and blouse were a far cry from the pads and hockey jersey Naomi usually saw her in. She was scowling down at the blonde like she was something she'd just stepped in.  
"Don't fucking call me that here!" She hissed, looking around nervously in case anyone was in ear shot. "What the fuck are you doing here, Campbell?"  
"Other than being assaulted?" The blonde snapped as she got back to her feet, wincing as she pushed herself up using her bad arm. "My stepdad got a job here, so we moved, and I have to start at this shithole."  
"_You're _going _here?" _Katie's eyes widened, as though the blonde had just declared that she had hidden a bomb somewhere in the school. Whatever her thoughts were on her new schoolmate, she didn't get a chance to share them as Emily spotted who her sister was talking to.

"Naomi!" The redhead bounded down the corridor wearing a grin before pulling the blonde in for a hug. Naomi awkwardly returned the gesture, not because her arm was sore, but because she wasn't really the hugging type. She and Emily had kept in touch through _Facebook_ over the summer, and the younger twin was certainly happier to see her than Katie was. Effy looked indifferent about the blonde's presence as she joined their group. "What are you doing here?" Emily repeated her sister's earlier question, though without the menace that Katie had mustered. Naomi explained about Kieran's new job and the move and Emily's eyes lit up. "That's awesome! We have practise tomorrow, you should come!"  
"A fucking _Hornet _is not playing on our team!" Katie snapped before Naomi could object herself.  
"Katie!" Emily scorned, but Naomi finally spoke up as she pulled her bag over her shoulder. She tried to make her tone as flippant as possible as she stared Katie down.  
"Actually I gave up playing...there's just no fun in _winning _all the time." She smirked as Katie seethed. "Good luck this year though."  
"We don't need _luck._" Katie snapped as she flicked her hair. "I'm Captain this year and the Pirates are going to knock the spots off the _Hornets!_"  
"Stripes." Naomi corrected, barely managing to keep a straight faced as Emily bit back a smirk and even Effy looked amused.  
"What?" Katie snapped again like the blonde was something nasty on the bottom of her shoe. _  
_"Hornets. They have stripes, not spots…like I said, _good luck_." She turned on her heels to go looking for her form class, leaving Katie glaring after her.

Kieran was going to be her form tutor for the year, as well as her politics teacher, so the class wasn't too hard to find; she could hear her stepfather cursing like a sailor from all the way down the corridor. She slumped in to one of the seats at the back of the class and pulled out a book as she waited for everyone else to turn up. "Hello Princess, haven't seen you around before. I'm Cook, but you can call me the Cookie Monster." She looked up from her book to find a young man grinning down at her. He was handsome, in a roguish kind of way, with his cheeky grin lending him an air of mischief as he took a seat at the desk in front of Naomi's, openly leering at her. He was joined by another young man with olive skin and floppy dark hair that hung over his wide eyes. He was clearly stoned. Cook clapped a hand on his shoulder. "This here is Freddie, my wingman. And that's my boy, JJ." He nodded towards a curly haired boy who was silently playing with a deck of cards on the other side of Freddie. He offered the blonde a wide smile as he held up the cards.  
"Pick a card, any card…"  
"I'd rather not." Naomi sneered. The trio were a strange bunch, and she really didn't like the way Cook was eyeing her up like she was a prime steak. She was almost thankful when Katie walked through the door, followed by Effy, Emily and a girl Naomi recognised as the Pirates' goalkeeper, Panda.

"Cook, do you have to hit on everything with tits?" Emily teased as she took the seat beside Naomi's. Effy sat down on the other side of Emily, with Katie sitting beside her, while Panda took the seat on the other side of Naomi. The other blonde was warm and bubbly as she introduced herself to Naomi. Naomi was only half listening to her twitter on as she watched the exchange between Cook and the youngest Fitch.  
"You know you're the only girl for me Emilio." Cook shot the youngest twin a wink. "Seeing as Eff comes as part of the package."  
"Trust me Cook, you couldn't make me _come_ anywhere with you." Effy retaliated, earning a bark of laughter from Cook. Despite Effy's harsh words Naomi could tell their banter was common place. Cook of course had to push it just that bit too far.  
"I can think of plenty places I've made you cum." Emily glared at him as Effy sat quietly fuming beside her. There was clearly some history there that Naomi was not aware of.

Thankfully Kieran walked in before anything could really kick off. "Right you little fuckers, I'm Kieran. It seems we're stuck with each other for the rest of the year, so let's make the most of it shall we?" He slammed his ratty old briefcase down on his desk as he slumped in to the seat behind it. "Right, registration, anyone not here?" He looked around the room at the stoic faces of his teenage audience and was met with silence. "Marvellous. Amuse yourselves until first lesson." He pulled out his lesson plans, which were just a few pages of scribbles and started looking over them, leaving his form class to entertain themselves. For Cook this meant turning his attention back to Naomi.

"So, how about it Blondie? You, me and my cock." He waggled his eyebrows suggestively at her and Naomi's lip curled in disgust.  
"I'd rather stick my head in a blender thanks."  
"Nice one!" He laughed as though he didn't get she was taking the piss out of him. "So you're a muff monkey too then?" Naomi felt her cheeks reddening as she realised what he was implying.  
"I'm not a fucking-"  
"A what?" Katie snapped, glaring daggers at the blonde as she instantly jumped to her twin's defence. Emily seemed more surprised by the blonde's sexuality than offended by her outburst. A lot of people instantly presumed she was a lesbian because she played sports. It had been even worse when she'd had her hair short.  
"I'm not a lesbian." Naomi finished, having narrowly avoided using a word she herself hated. She wasn't a lesbian, she wasn't really in to labels at all, but if she had to classify herself then she would landly squarely in the bisexual box; Cook would never find that out though.  
"That's ok; we're not hetero-phobic." Emily teased; her easy going attitude was a complete contrast to her highly strung twin.  
"We're very open minded." Effy piped in with a smirk. Despite Katie's presence, Naomi felt quite at ease with others. She hadn't exactly left many friends behind in London and it was nice to be in with a group for a change. It turned out she had at least one of them in all of her classes, and most of them took English.

"Me and Panda have Sociology next too, you can walk to class with us." Emily bubbled as the bell for first period went and they all started packing up and heading out the door. Naomi was still ignoring Kieran so she didn't say goodbye as she Emily and Panda walked out the door.  
"There's no way she's straight." Katie sneered and Effy rolled her eyes at her.  
"Since she's just walked out with my girlfriend, let's pretend she is." It was Katie's turn to roll her eyes as she shook her head at Effy's insecurities. In all the time she'd known Effy, Katie had never seen her to insecure about a relationship. Though in all honesty she'd never seen Effy in an actual relationship before she'd gotten with her twin. Effy was the 'use them and lose them' type and when she'd first noticed her sister taking an interest in the rebellious girl she'd warned her she was going to get her heart broken. She had never expected Effy would be the one to fall so hard.

It wasn't really Naomi that she was worried about though and they both knew it. Emily's first girlfriend, Mandy, was still sniffing around and Emily was far too nice to just tell her to fuck off. Katie of course had voiced the sentiment many times; though Mandy took no notice of her. "Shut the fuck up Effs, you know Ems is crazy about you!"  
"Speaking of crazy, I can't believe Campbell's given up playing." The other girl tactfully changed the subject. "We should really try and get her on the Pirates, we'd win this year with her playing for us-"  
"We're going to win anyway!" Katie snapped indignantly. "Like we need that skinny bitch on the team."  
"I think the lady doth protest too much." Effy smirked and the reference went straight over Katie's head.

"I can't believe you're not playing anymore!" Emily started again as they were meant to be discussing the Functionalist view of Crime and Deviance. Naomi idly flipped through the text book, trying to pretend she wasn't that bothered about giving up the game she loved. In all honesty it was killing her, but she had made her bed and she was going to lie in it. She couldn't betray her old friends and play for a rival team.  
"Yeah Naomi, you're a well ace scorer! That last shot was a right whizzer! Went straight past me!" Panda was sometimes difficult to understand, but Naomi was managing to pick up the general gist of most of what she was saying. She shrugged at them both with her eyes still glued to her book.  
"It wouldn't feel right playing for another team."  
"You should come to practise tomorrow anyway, you don't have to join in, just watch?" Emily suggested. She wasn't one to give up easily. She was like a dog with a bone and Naomi found herself shrugging again just to shut her up.  
"Yeah, maybe."


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N:** **Sorry it's been like a month since I last posted. I sprained my hand again, had loads on at work and got hooked on reading Niceoneblondie's awesome fic 'Ink' (and subsequently had to go get a new tattoo myself =]) so it's been a busy month. I also went to my first Ice Hockey game in three years the other weekend…and we lost. It was an awesome game though and explaining the rules to my friend made me feel like I actually knew what I was talking about XD.**

"So Naomi's coming to practise tomorrow night!" Emily beamed as the pair sat down at the lunch table that Effy, Panda and Katie were already sitting at.  
"I said maybe." Naomi corrected as she caught the look on Katie's face; though truth be told Emily had talked her in to going to the rink to watch the Pirates training. The little Fitch was persistent if nothing else. "Just to watch." She added, which seemed to pacify Katie a little bit.  
"Coming to watch how it's done?" She sneered as she picked at the salad she was eating for lunch. It was a world away from the pizza and chips Naomi had shovelled on to her plate. Skating had always helped keep her weight steady in her teenage years, but without weekly training and matches to keep her trim she would have to start keeping an eye on her waistline. Of course that didn't stop her lathering her chips in mayonnaise as she shot Katie a glare back.  
"How what's done? Losing?"

Katie's eyes narrowed on her as her lips parted to reply, but Cook and the rest of the lads joined the table just in time to save Naomi from the oldest twin's wrath. "Alright ladies?" Cook hollered as he pulled out the chair beside Naomi and plonked down beside her, stealing a chip from her plate.  
"Do you mind?" She snapped at him. She hated anyone touching her food and, given his reputation, god knows where his hands had been.  
"Not at all. I'm big on sharing." He chuckled as he thrust his hips up towards her suggestively.  
"I think you've shared your nasty diseases with enough girls in Bristol, don't you?" Katie spoke up before Naomi could think of something witty to say back. Naomi wasn't sure whether the other girl had spoken to back her up, or to become the centre of attention again. Either way it worked, Cook tried to turn his charm on to her instead.  
"Don't worry Katie-kins, there's plenty of the Cookie Monster to go around!"  
"In your dreams Cook."  
"Every night babe."  
"Eugh! Fuck off Creep!"

Katie glowered at him, but Naomi was willing to bet she was loving the attention. "Don't be a prick, Cook." Freddie scorned his best friend and offered Katie a hopeful smile. It seemed Cook wasn't the only one dreaming about her. Katie seemed pointedly oblivious to Freddie as she turned her back on the boys all together. Freddie looked a little crestfallen as Katie acted like he didn't exist.

"So, girl's night tomorrow right? Naomi, if you _have _to come, then turn up for eight on the dot, yeah?" Her voice was dripping with contempt and it couldn't be more plain that the last thing Katie wanted was for her to go to practise.  
"Wouldn't miss it." Naomi replied, forcing her tone to sound chirpy as she stared Katie down. The smaller girl rolled her eyes but said nothing more about it. She would probably try and stick her oar in when the lads weren't there and she could talk more openly.

The dichotomy of Katie's character was clear. She kept her social life and her career on the ice completely separate. With her high heels and WAG attitude she was far from the picture of the athlete she was. Naomi was suddenly struck by the image of Katie on the ice in her high heels, clutching her handbag and her stick in the same hand whilst trying to apply her lipstick with the other. She bit back a giggle and ducked her head in an attempt to avoid the other girl's eye. Emily threw her a questioning look but the blonde shook her head at her. She didn't get a chance to question her though as a girl slunk up to their table.

"Hey Ems." The girl was tall and slim with long dark hair and olive skin. Naomi recognised her as Mandy, one of the Pirates' defenders. Emily smiled up at her while Effy sat in stony silence beside her, a possessive arm draped over the back of Emily's chair. She looked less than impressed with Mandy, while the other girl ignored her as successfully as Katie had overlooked Freddie. "I've got tickets for that new indie flick on Friday-"  
"We're busy." Effy answered before Emily had a chance. Mandy wasn't fazed by the blunt response or the cold hard glare Effy was shooting her way.  
"Wow, your ventriloquism act is getting really good!" Mandy taunted and Naomi caught the twitch of Emily's lips as she tried not to smile. "You answered without even moving your lips."  
"_Mandy_." Emily scorned as though she'd had years of practise. She took Effy's hand in hers and gave it a gentle squeeze under the table. "Sorry, but we are busy Friday."  
"Fitch family dinner Friday?" Mandy questioned with some familiarity and Effy's jaw tightened. "Can't say I miss those."  
"That's funny, we don't miss you either, _bitch." _Katie piped up like a guard dog and Naomi was glad her anger was directed at someone else for a change.

"_Katie." _Emily sighed, struggling to keep the peace on all sides. That was the fundamental difference between the twins, where Katie strived on confrontation Emily tried her best to avoid it. She was trying to keep everyone happy without stepping on anyone's toes. "Look, I'll see you tomorrow ok?" She looked up at the other girl with an almost pleading expression, hoping she would get the message and back down.  
"Whatever." She moved to walk away when she caught Naomi's eye. "Have we met?" They'd shared more than a few scrapes on the ice the previous season and the other girl was a good solid defender who used her towering height to her advantage. Naomi could see her beginning to register who she was so she stood up and stuck out her hand, hoping the other girl wouldn't mention where she knew her from. She didn't want to give Katie any excuse to kick off with her again.  
"I don't think so. I'm Naomi, I'm new"

"I'm Mandy." She shook her hand with an easy smile, her eyes slowly raking over the blonde. Naomi felt a little self-conscious and was aware she had both twins scrutinizing her reaction. Mandy was an attractive girl, but she wasn't about to wade in to that particular minefield. "So, have you had the grand tour of Round View yet?"  
"We're halfway through, aren't we Naoms?" Katie suddenly sprang to her feet and hoisted her bag over her shoulder before slipping her arm through the blonde's to drag her off. She led her clear out of the canteen and for a minute Naomi actually thought she was going to give her a tour of the school. That was until Katie turned on her and shoved her up against a locker.  
"What the fuck?" She was still amazed by how strong the pint sized girl was; even off the ice she could deliver a hefty blow.  
"Don't even think of being friends with that bitch Mandy!"  
"I was trying to stop her from mentioning where she knows me from!" Naomi snapped back defensively. Katie was still standing right in front of her and she would have felt less on edge if she'd just taken a step back. "I'm guessing you don't want Captain Syphilis back there to find out that either of us play hockey, do you Killer?" The question was more like a thinly veiled threat and Katie finally took a step back.

"Do not fucking call me that!" She grumbled as she adjusted her bag on her shoulder and crossed her arms over her chest. "I'm just trying to _help _you Campbell. You don't want to fall in with the wrong crowd. Mandy's a freak, and if you want to hang with _us_ then you can't be friends with _her!_" Naomi scrunched her face up; she hated the drama that came with teenage girls.  
"For fuck's sake, I said hello to the girl, it's not like I stuck my tongue down her throat!" Naomi realised her mistake too late as the other girl grinned smugly, like she'd just been proven right about something.  
"Wow, that's a real _straight_ thing to say."  
"Fuck you, Katie." The blonde pushed past her, intending to go and see Kieran before lunch ended.  
"In your dreams, Campbell." Katie sneered at her in her usual charming manner and the blonde couldn't help but laugh.  
"Trust me, Killer, you're not my type."

She left the oldest twin glaring after her as she set out to manoeuvre the endless hallways of Roundview to try and find Kieran's classroom again. She really could have used a guided tour, but Katie would be the last person she asked for it. Maybe Emily could show her around a bit; after all the younger twin was a lot friendlier than her sister. "Hello, trouble." Kieran greeted her as she finally found his classroom and hopped up on to his desk. She was so glad to be away from all the hormonal teenage bullshit that came with Katie Fitch and her friends that she forgot she wasn't speaking to him. "How's it going?"  
"Ok, I guess." She shrugged. Besides Katie doing her head in the college wasn't too bad. She'd enjoyed her morning lessons with Emily and Panda and even Cook had been a little entertaining.  
"Coming from you that's practically a standing ovation." He teased, a big stupid grin on his face as he realised the blonde's stubborn resolve had finally crumbled. She shot him a look that would make anyone else offer a hasty apology, but Kieran knew his step-daughter all too well. Her bark was worse than her bite.

"Emily invited me to their practise tomorrow." She tried to sound casual about it, but Kieran's grin grew even wider. "Just to watch!"  
"Maybe you should take your skates, just in case?"  
"Maybe." She grumbled, more than a little tempted. The Pirates weren't a bad team and it would be nice to get back in her skates, even if it was just for a training session. She wouldn't mind giving Katie a nice hard shove on the ice either. "So what time is the Cardiff game kicking off next weekend?"

Naomi spent the rest of her lunch break in Kieran's class and took a seat at the back when the bell went. She had a double lesson of politics to finish her first day at Roundview and a few minutes after the bell most of the gang walked through the door, except for Cook who rarely turned up for _any _lessons. Effy and Emily took the two seats to Naomi's left while Panda sat her right. Katie took the seat on the end next to Effy and shot Naomi another glare. Freddie and JJ took the desk in front of them just as Kieran started the usual spiel that came with the first lesson of a new term. He outlined the two modules they would be covering that year and instructed them to get in to pairs to talk about the first module 'Issues in UK politics'. It was a bit of a cop out on Kieran's part, so he could get away with not doing anything for an hour. Naomi didn't mind so much until she realised the others had automatically paired off. Effy and Emily were naturally a pair and JJ and Panda had teamed up, leaving Katie or Freddie as Naomi's only option. Katie seemed to figure that out at the same time as Naomi did. She huffed as she got to her feet and took the seat Panda had been sitting in until she'd moved to sit beside JJ. Freddie glumly joined them as Katie did her best to ignore his longing looks.

"What's up with him?" Naomi was careful to keep her voice low with Freddie sitting right in front of them.  
"We went out last year, but I dumped him for Danny at the start of the summer." Katie's answer was flippant and she didn't worry about keeping her voice low. "Danny plays for the Bristol Rovers, he's well lush." She carried jabbering on, oblivious to the way Freddie's shoulders hunched up. She didn't mention that Danny was also a certified idiot who could barely put one foot in front of the other, never mind kick a ball. She had been thinking about dumping him for a while, but she was waiting for someone better to come along first. Katie had never _not _had a boyfriend since she was seven; she didn't just dump fit men with fast cars and huge wallets; not without a backup option anyway. Freddie was a nice enough guy, but he was more like a last resort than a backup plan.  
"Swell." Naomi's voice was dripping with sarcasm as she rolled her eyes. It was going to be a long afternoon.

Sure enough, when the bell finally rang for the end of the day Naomi was all too ready to pack up her stuff and get going. "Naomi, I've got some shite teacher's meeting until four, you heading home or waiting for me?" Kieran quizzed as he packed up his own papers in to his tattered old briefcase that was practically falling apart.  
"I'll just go." Naomi didn't fancy another trip in his clapped out old car. "I'll tell mum to keep you some dinner." She tossed him a wave as she followed the others out the door.

"There's Danny!" Katie beamed as her boyfriend pulled up in a bright yellow convertible with the roof down. She wasn't especially glad to see him, but she did like it when he came to college in the flashy car. It was always sure to get people looking at them. Katie was used to getting attention as the louder older twin and she thrived on it. "He plays for Bristol Rovers you know."  
"Yeah, you mentioned." Naomi replied dryly and Emily stifled a grin as Katie glared at the blonde. "He looks like he's driving a fucking banana." She dropped her voice as she leant in to whisper to Emily and had Effy glaring at her too. She really wasn't winning any friends at Roundview. The youngest twin let out a laugh as she nodded in agreement.

"Alright sexy?" Danny leered as he pulled up in front of the group of girls and Naomi couldn't be sure whether he was just addressing Katie or trying to flirt with all of them. His focus soon landed on the blonde and his beady little eyes narrowed as his smug grin widened. "Who's your new friend babe?"  
"She's _nobody,_ babes." Katie shot her a pointed look as she pushed past the blonde to get in to the car. She didn't like the way her boyfriend was eyeing Naomi up and she felt a possessive surge of jealousy run through her; even if she was planning on dumping the dim-witted footballer as soon as possible. "Ems, are you coming are what?" She snapped impatiently at her younger twin as she made no attempt to get in the car.  
"Actually I'm going to walk home with Eff and Naomi. Tell mum I'll be home for tea."  
"Do I look like your fucking messenger?" Katie huffed; annoyed that she would have to be alone with Danny. He would probably try and put his hand up her skirt the second they drove off. At least with Emily in the car she could have made an attempt to give him the brush off without coming across as frigid.

"Love you too, Kay." Emily grumbled as Danny cranked the volume on the CD player in the car and revved his engine, attracting the attention of a group of gaggling blonde girls in identical black uniforms.  
"Well he seems nice." Naomi smirked as they watched the car speed off, narrowly missing a pensioner on a mobility scooter at the traffic lights.  
"Just one of the many creeps my sister's dated." Emily shook her head as they began walking out of the college gates. "I swear, if he asks me for a threesome with them one more time…" She trailed off without finishing her threat, but Naomi could see how much the arrogant footballer annoyed her.  
"Hey, I couldn't even get that for my birthday, never mind Danny!" Effy smirked as she took Emily's hand in her own. The smaller girl rolled her eyes at her girlfriend, but squeezed her hand back.  
"We weren't together on your birthday!"  
"So now we are do I get a threesome with you and Katie?" Effy challenged, knowing how far she could play before Emily snapped.  
"You're lucky to have one Fitch, babe." Emily shot back with a cheeky grin of her own and Naomi felt like a bit of a third wheel around the two of them; for once she wished the oldest twin was actually with them. Thankfully Effy lived the closest to the college and the sickeningly cute couple said their goodbyes as they left Naomi at the gate, barely able to keep their hands off each other before the front door had even closed behind them.

Emily had told her how to get back to her own street from Effy's, but the streets of the foreign city were alien to her and after twenty minutes of walking around she was pretty sure she was lost. She stopped by a low garden wall and perched herself on it while she pulled her phone out of her pocket and tried to use the street maps function on it to figure out where she was. "Hey, you look a little lost. Can I help?" She looked up from her phone to find a girl around her own age smiling timidly at her from the other side of the road. She looked familiar; thought Naomi couldn't quite place her. She had long dark hair that hung loose around her shoulders and a rather plain face that Naomi could have seen before on a half a dozen other girls. She wore baggy dungarees over a chequered shirt and might as well have had a rainbow tattooed across her forehead.

"Uh, hey, yeah I am. Do you know how to get to…" She looked at the smudge of black ink on the back of her hand. Kieran had written the street name down for her before she'd left college in case she forgot it, and the cheap ink had smudged together making the letters illegible except for an S, an M and maybe an E. "Sesame Street?" She frowned at her hand and Kieran's atrocious handwriting. She knew the street started with an S, but couldn't for the life of her remember what it was. The girl chuckled softly as she crossed the road and reached out for Naomi's hand.  
"I think that might be Seminary Street. It's about five minutes from here, I can show you if you want?" The girl beamed at her and Naomi was careful to watch her step.  
"No, I wouldn't want to put you out, directions will be fine-"  
"It's no trouble; I'm going that way anyway. I have Cadets tonight." She indicated the heavy duffle bag on her back and the blonde found herself with no choice but to follow her.

"Cadets, huh? Must be tough? I couldn't run around with that thing on my back." Naomi nodded at the massive backpack as she made an effort to make small talk since the girl was helping her.  
"Not really, you're more than fit enough for it Campbell." Naomi stopped dead in her tracks as the other girl called her by name, her smile never faltering.  
"How do you know my name?" Naomi's tone came out a little more defensive than she meant, but she felt unnerved by the strange girl.  
"Sorry, guess you don't recognise me without the skates. I'm Sophia Moore; I play defence for the Pirates… you've taken me down a few times." Sophia made up the first line of the Pirates, along with Effy, Panda, Mandy and the twins.  
"Oh, nice to meet you."

"So, are you signing up to play for us this season then?"  
"Uh, I've given up hockey. It wouldn't be right, playing for another team. Emily's invited me to watch you guys practise though-"  
"Emily's great, isn't she? Her sister Katie is such a bitch though!"  
"Katie's ok." Naomi shrugged, not sure why she was defending the older twin, when she was in fact a bitch. "I think this is my street." Naomi recognised some of the houses they were passing and the large oil stain from Kieran's car on the road in front of her own house.  
"Oh, well nice meeting you. I don't live that far away if you, you know, want to hang out some time?" She looked hopefully down at the blonde as she fidgeted with the heavy pack she was carrying.  
"Yeah, maybe." Naomi was an attractive girl, but she wasn't much of a people person. She wasn't used to girls being so forward and she found herself nervously mumbling a 'yeah, maybe' back at her before making a hasty retreat in to the house.

"Hi luv, how was your day? Make any friends?" Her mother quizzed before she even had her foot in the door. "Where's Kieran?"  
"Fine, yes and teacher's meeting." Naomi answered as she put her bag down in the hall and went straight to the fridge. It was the most she had said to her mother in weeks and Gina didn't miss the opportunity to keep her talking.  
"Friends? Do tell!" She beamed as she filled the kettle and Naomi took a seat at the kitchen table. "Any cute boys? Or girls?"  
"Do you remember the Fitch twins? They play for the Pirates."  
"Twins…oh, yes, didn't one of them break your arm?"  
"Katie." Naomi nodded and the name left a bitter taste on her tongue. The oldest twin had actually been bearable that night in the hospital, but she'd been nothing but bitchy with the blonde all day long. It was like the girl had a split personality. "Well they go to Roundview along with some of the other girls on the team…they invited me to train with them tomorrow." Naomi tried to sound casual about the invite, but she couldn't miss the way her mother's face lit up.  
"It might be good for you to get back on the ice, luv-"  
"I'm not playing. I'm just going to watch!" Naomi objected, returning to her sulking self.  
"Of course dear." Gina replied with something of a knowing grin. She would bet her right arm that her daughter would be itching to play again the second she stepped in to the rink.

* * *

Naomi took a deep breath, savouring the familiar feeling of the crisp air biting at her lungs. The rink had emptied after the last evening skating session and the Zamboni was out prepping the ice for the Pirates' first practise session of the season. She was sitting in the player's box, staring out across the rink. "You made it then?" The blonde jumped as Katie appeared beside her. She was already dressed in her pads and wearing her team jersey with her hair tied up out of her way. She looked more familiar to Naomi in the kit than she had the previous day with all the makeup and the short skirt; it put her at ease a little bit.  
"Looks like." She shrugged. "Emily not with you?"  
"She's with Effy and they're probably eating each other's faces, so keep your lezza hands off my twin, yeah?" Bitchy Katie was back in full swing again and Naomi shook her head, berating herself for thinking Katie would act like a civilised human being just because they were at the rink and not the college. Katie 'Killer' Fitch was not known for being civil on the ice.  
"I'm not gay Katie, sorry to disappoint you." She threw the smaller girl a wink and watched as her cheeks coloured and she grew flustered with anger.  
"Please, even if I was a fucking muff muncher, I could do so much better than _you _Campbell!"  
"Aw, Katie-kins, I'm hurt." Naomi clutched a hand over her heart and grinned as Katie fumed at her.

Mumbling under her breath Katie turned and flounced off back towards the dressing room to find the others. "Alright, it's Campbell isn't it?" Naomi turned to find the Zamboni driver had stopped in front of her at the side of the rink. The man had short dark curly hair and a dazzling white smile that could have come straight from a toothpaste advert. She recognised him as Rob Fitch, the Pirates' coach and Katie's father. "I think Katie's still a bit upset about her leg." He chuckled as he got down from the Zamboni and stuck his hand out to her over the boards.  
"Yeah it is, and I'm pretty sure that was Katie's fault." Naomi objected as she shook his hand.  
"I'll take your word for it." Coach Fitch shrugged, knowing all too well what his oldest daughter was like. "I had to miss the last game of the season, the wife's mother took ill, fantastic weekend that was…Emsy mentioned you'd moved here. Thinking of joining the team? We could use some fresh blood." Naomi had a feeling that if she did try to join the team her 'fresh blood' would be all over the ice thanks to Katie Fitch. She shook her head, though she couldn't deny the deep longing in her gut to pull on a pair of skates.  
"Just here to watch. I've given up hockey."  
"Shame." Rob shook his head, his smile turning a little sad. "Well, you know where we are if you change your mind. I better get this finished before the girls get out. Nice meeting you Naomi."  
"You too, Mr Fitch."

Naomi took a seat in the front row of the player's box and leant against the board as she watched the Pirates file on to the ice. Emily spotted her and waved over to her. Effy nodded her head towards her in acknowledgement as she skated over to Katie. The younger twin had been right when she'd said they barely had enough players to make a second line. There were just over a dozen girls on the ice, and Katie positioned herself in front of them while she gave them all a pep talk before setting them off on skating drills. She seemed in her element as head bee, helping Rob to run the training session. She kept shooting Naomi dirty looks as she skated by and the blonde felt her mood growing worse the longer she sat there watching everyone on the ice. Hockey had been her life since Kieran had first put a stick in her hands and she missed it more than anything else about home. She'd promised not to play for another team though, and even if she could bring herself to wear another team's colours, she could never be teammates with Katie Fitch. They'd end up killing each other.

As the training session went on in to the night Naomi started to notice Katie was getting slower. She hadn't seemed to be on top form at the start of practise, but the blonde had just presumed she was taking it easy with it being the start of the season; but as her eyes narrowed on the Centre she realised she was favouring one leg. She tried to remember which one Katie had broken. She was pretty certain the other girl's leg was still giving her trouble and towards the end of the session Katie seemed to be in serious pain. She was hiding it well from the others though and Naomi seemed to be the only one who had picked up on it. When the girls stopped for a break Naomi decided to check on the older twin, she knew what kind of damage skating on a bad leg could do.

She'd only made it halfway around the side of the rink when one of the girls skated up beside her. The Pirates' number ten was an impressive height on her skates and she looked pretty solid in her padding. Naomi recognised her before she even pulled her helmet off. "Hey Sophia."  
"Hi Naomi!" The other girl was smiling from ear to ear again. "Enjoying the show?"  
"Sophia! Panda needs help getting the net out!" Katie snapped angrily as she skated up beside them. Her face was flushed from all the skating drills and her helmet had flattened her hair to her head.  
"I'll see you later." Sophia didn't dare argue with the feisty little captain and tossed Naomi a wave as she skated over to the other side of the rink, where Panda was struggling to untangle one of her skates from the net.

"You should avoid _her_, she's a nut job." Katie scorned and Naomi was surprised by the venom in her voice as she glared at the blonde like it was her fault Sophia had started talking to her. The blonde felt her hackles rising as Katie once again tried to tell her who she could and couldn't associate with.  
"Mandy, Sophia…any other girls you'd like me to stay away from?"  
"I'm trying to fucking help you, you daft cow!" Katie growled at her, sounding far from helpful. "Sophia practically fucking _stalked _Ems last year, ok? Ask her! I'm just trying to watch your back."  
"Funny, you're usually the one shovine me in the back." Naomi wasn't sure whether to believe the other girl or not. Sophia did seem a little odd, but Katie could easily just be trying to stir trouble.  
"Know what? Do what the fuck you want! Just don't come crying to me when Moore won't leave you alone!" Katie huffed as she pulled her helmet back on and shouted at the others to get started again.

Naomi frowned as she watched her go, still not sure what her game was. "Hey, Effy!" She called to the other girl as she spotted 'Stonem' on the back of one of the blue shirts. Even in all of her padding Effy's frame still looked slim. She knew how to hold her own on the ice though and Naomi knew first hand that she wasn't as easy to take out as she looked. Effy pulled off her helmet and leant against the side of the player's box as she nodded at the blonde. "Can I ask you something? Katie said Sophia stalked Emily last year, is that true?" Effy's eyes narrowed as she sought out Mandy and Sophia, the two defenders and Naomi got her answer.  
"I'd stay away from her if I were you."  
"That's what Katie said." Naomi sulked, confused by Katie's constantly changing moods towards her. One minute she was being the world's biggest bitch and then the next she was trying to look out for her.  
"Well you should listen to her." Effy replied gravelly. She shot the blonde a long hard look and she felt like the other girl was looking right inside of her. "Piece of advice Naomi, you might want to try pulling that stick out of your arse and putting it to use on the ice. Anyone can see you're miserable."

Effy was right and they both knew it. Naomi had been miserable all through the summer when her arm had been too bad to let her practise with her team and deciding to give up playing all together had just put her in to a deep funk that she hadn't been able to shake off. She felt comfortable in the ice rink, even in the foreign city the rink felt like home to her. "Katie would never let me on the team." She shrugged, making excuses. Effy smirked at her. It was a mischievous little grin that seemed to suit her.  
"Rob and Emily are dying to get you on the team, and it's the _team's _decision, not Katie's…besides, she wants you on the team. She's just too damn proud to admit it."

A tiny player appeared beside them and Naomi didn't need to see the name on the back of her shirt to know who it was. "Come on babe, Katie's about to burst a blood vessel if we don't get started."  
"Coming, I was just talking Naomi here in to getting on the ice with us, isn't that right?"  
"I…I don't have my stuff." Naomi hesitated, casting a wary glance towards the other twin who was glaring at the three of them from the other side of the rink. Emily's face lit up as she pulled off her gloves and fished out her locker key to give to the blonde.  
"That's ok, I brought my spare skates. You're about a six, right?" Emily beamed and Naomi suddenly got the feeling that she'd been played.


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: **Sorry I haven't updated in ages guys, haven't been able to go to many games this season so haven't had much inspiration to write. This chapter's a little shorter too, pretty much what should have been on the end of the last one.

"Fucking boots." Naomi grumbled as she pulled on the laces of her borrowed skates. Emily's skates were a good fit, and far better than the hire skates on offer at the rink, but Naomi's own pair were practically moulded to her feet and any others just didn't sit right.  
"Get a fucking move on Campbell!" Katie hollered at her from out on the ice. Grumbling some more, Naomi finally finished tying the laces and got to her feet. The grin on the blades was wrong and the ice was already cut to pieces from the other girls practising, so for a moment or two the blonde felt unsteady on her feet. She did a few slow laps of the rink to get used to the borrowed ice skates and didn't miss the glares Katie was sending her way.

"How about a friendly game?" Rob suggested once Naomi was finished warming up.  
"Great idea!" Katie piped up. "How about the first line of attackers against the second? They can have the first line defenders, and Naomi. That should be fair, yeah?" Katie smiled innocently as Rob agreed with the teams; which coincidentally put Katie, Emily and Effy against Naomi, Sophia and Mandy. Naomi felt like there was a giant target marked on her back as she pulled on some spare pads and a helmet that Emily just happened to have brought with her.

She nodded towards the others on her team as she got in to place for the centre face off. Sophia and Mandy were acting as defenders, while two women Naomi didn't know took the positions of left and right wingers. Katie stood opposite her as the opposing centre, staring her down as she waited for everyone else to get in to position. Rob stood between them, poised to drop the puck. Naomi gripped her stick a little too tight, waiting anxiously for the supposedly 'friendly' game to kick off. She knew Katie would be all over her and, as much as she would love to pay her back for the broken arm she'd given her, she knew the other girl's leg was still weak and she was worried about her hurting herself. She'd just have to hope she could use her speed to an advantage and keep out of the smaller girl's way.

The puck dropped, slamming down against the ice and Naomi's stick reached it first as she sent it soaring towards Mandy with a slapshot. Despite not having the puck Katie went straight for her, shoving in to her with a full on body check that almost sent her over. "Katie!" Rob scorned, though he didn't send her off for a penalty. There were obviously perks to being the coach's daughter. Naomi recovered her balance and went soaring up the ice, following the puck as Mandy passed it to the left winger. Katie was right on her tail, but Naomi was faster and she managed to keep ahead of her as she received the puck. She was so busy watching for Katie that she failed to see Emily coming up on her from the right. She swept the puck away from her, but the pass was bed and it went flying past Effy and bouncing off the boards. Sophia caught it on the rebound and passed it back to her. The blonde dodged both twins with a bit of careful stick handling and used a snap shot to get the puck past Panda.

When they returned to the centre for the faceoff Katie had a face like thunder on her. It wasn't just that Naomi had scored though; the older twin's leg was growing stiff and sore. Naomi could see she was in pain from the way she was holding herself, favouring her other leg. When the puck dropped again Katie won the faceoff and ignored the pain in her leg to get halfway up the ice before passing to Effy. She carried on with the same speed and determination for the full first period, though luckily they were only playing ten minute periods with it being a practise game. Halfway in to the second period, when Naomi's side were winning three goals to two, Katie tried to slam her in to the boards to get the puck from her. The blonde was quicker though and dodged just in time so that it was the other girl who ended up against the boards as their sticks battled over the puck.

"Quit playing so fucking serious!" Naomi snapped, out of breath from having been chased up and down the ice the entire game by the little fireball that was slashing away at the puck she was busy trying to protect.  
"I give a hundred and ten percent every game. If you can't handle that, then get off the ice!" Katie growled back, growing frustrated as she couldn't get away from the side of the rink to challenge the blonde properly.  
"You're going to hurt yourself!" Naomi slammed her back against the board, pinning her leg to emphasise her point. Katie swore loudly as pain shot through the still tender limb. Naomi used Katie's distraction to her advantage as she sent the puck soaring over to Sophia. "You won't win the league if you fuck your leg up before the season even starts!"  
"I'll fuck you up, Campbell!" Katie snarled and shoved the blonde with both hands. Naomi went stumbling back and ended up on her arse on the ice. She glared at the smaller girl and was ready to launch herself at her when Emily and Mandy skated up to them, putting themselves between the two warring girls. Emily had a quiet word with her furious twin while Mandy offered her hand out to help Naomi up.  
"Ignore Killer; she's just jealous she's not the centre of attention." Mandy laughed as her gloved hand clapped the blonde on the shoulder.

Naomi laughed along with her, but she couldn't help looking over her shoulder as Emily and Katie carried on bickering on the ice. Rob, who had finally noticed half of his players were tucked in a corner of the ice, blew the whistle that hung from his neck. "Come on girls, this isn't a social gathering! Get moving!" Katie begrudgingly started skating again, though the blow to her leg had left her slower than before and Naomi almost felt guilty about it; for a whole minute until she got hold of the puck and Katie was on her arse, playing dirty again. She elbowed the blonde, sending her crashing to the ice again. She landed heavily on her arm and had to bite back a scream. She wouldn't give the other girl the satisfaction. Rob finally noticed his daughter's tactics and blew his whistle again, once the puck was out of play he pointed at Katie and signalled the penalty box. "Two minutes for body checking!" Katie cursed under her breath, but she knew better than to argue with her father and she skated over to the sin bin to serve her time.

Mandy helped Naomi to her feet again, grinning as she did it. "I like a girl on her back Campbell, but try and stay on your feet on the ice, yeah?" She winked and Naomi felt her cheeks burning with embarrassment and anger. On top of her wounded pride, her borrowed skates were biting in to her ankles and her arm was throbbing. She looked over to the penalty box and saw Katie holding her leg, which probably felt as bad as Naomi's previously broken arm. She wondered whether the oldest twin had deliberately been caught shoving her to get sent off for a couple of minutes rest.  
"Think I'll sit the rest out." She made her way over to the side of the rink and slipped in to the sin bin beside Katie. "Has anyone ever told you you're fucking crazy on the ice?" Naomi grumbled, though there was the hint of a smile on her lips as Katie glared at her.  
"A few times." She shrugged. "I can't help that I'm competitive."  
"Competitive? You almost broke my fucking arm. Again!" She really didn't get the smaller girl. Sometimes she seemed to be trying to make friends with her, like in the hospital when they'd gone more than ten minutes without arguing, and she kept telling her who to be friends with, offering her supposed 'good advice', yet at other times she was short and snappy and she'd practically tried to take her out on the ice.

"Yeah, well, learn to stay on your fucking feet." Katie smirked as she untied her laces and slipped off her skates. She seemed to have thrown in the towel as well. She flexed her foot and ankle, wincing as the pain increased without the support of her boots.  
"Should you be playing?" Naomi quizzed, genuinely concerned for the other girl. She had seen too many people try to play with injuries before their bodies were ready. It tended to end badly.  
"I'm fine! And don't you dare tell anyone otherwise!" She snapped again and the blonde felt dizzy from the girl's mood swings. "I just overdid it that's all; you're still pretty hard to catch, considering you haven't been skating." Coming from Katie 'Killer' Fitch it had almost sounded like a compliment.  
"Yeah, well you're the fastest cripple I know." Naomi shot back with a smirk.  
"Oi!" Katie shoved her with her elbow, though the action was more playful and held none of the menace it had on the ice. "I can still skate circles around you, Campbell!"  
"Keep telling yourself that, Fitch."

"You pussies giving up already? I thought it was going to be a fight to the death?" Effy skated over to them as the whistle blew for the end of the second period. She pulled off her helmet and stood leaning against the boards as Katie flipped her off. Emily came over to join them and kissed Effy's cheek as she pulled off her own helmet. Even in her skates Emily could only just see over the boards as she offered Naomi a friendly grin.  
"Have we tempted you to play again then?" It seemed when the youngest twin got something in her head she stuck with it.  
"Maybe." Naomi shrugged, though in truth it had been exhilarating to be back on the ice; even with Katie trying to kill her. "I might come to the next practise…with my own kit." She couldn't wait to get Emily's skates off her poor crippled feet.  
"Great! Well, Dad owns the rink, so anytime you want to come down and skate it's on the house…I know Dad really wants you on the team...we all do." She shot a significant look Katie's way and the older twin let out an exasperated sigh.  
"I guess you'd be good for the team." She admitted through gritted teeth, like the words actually pained her to say. Naomi knew it had taken a lot for her to swallow her pride so she pulled off her gloves and stuck out her hand to her.  
"Truce?"

"Whatever." Katie huffed, though she shook her hand. "Just work on staying on your feet, yeah?" She teased with a smug grin. The blonde rolled her eyes at her.  
"Well maybe if we're playing for the same team you'll stop trying to knock me out."  
"Sorry muff-muncher, I don't play for _your team._"  
"Katie!" Emily scorned, but Naomi laughed it off as she pulled off her borrowed pads. She was growing used to the older twin's bitchiness.  
"Whatever Katie, I'll leave you kids to play in the shower. I need to get home-"  
"Hey, Naomi! My brother's picking me up if you want a lift?" Naomi hadn't realised she'd been standing so close to them. Katie rolled her eyes and muttered something under her breath to Emily.

"Uh, I'm good, thanks. My stepdad's picking me up."  
"Oh, ok. Well, see you tomorrow. Bye guys!" She waved at the others, seemingly unaware that Katie hated her guts and Emily was trying her hardest not to meet her eye.  
"Freak." Katie murmured as Sophia left the ice. For once Emily didn't scorn her.  
"She's kind of right. Watch what you're doing Naoms, Sophia's nice and everything, but she gets really clingy and a little nuts."  
"Sounds like someone else I know." Effy muttered, her gaze burning a hole in to Mandy. Emily shook her head but took hold of Effy's hand anyway, giving it a reassuring squeeze.

"Nice work out there girls!" Rob complimented as he made his way over to the side of the rink. "Just watch those penalties Katie! Great shooting there Naomi. We tempted you to join us then?"  
"Maybe. I'll come to the next practise and we'll see."  
"Great! Well we've got a game coming up in two weeks, so don't take too long deciding!"  
"Yeah, we could use a second line centre." Katie piped up and Rob's smile wavered.  
"Actually Katie, I was going to talk to you about that. In private."  
"What?" She was instantly on the defensive and Naomi had a feeling she knew what Rob was going to say. He wasn't as oblivious as Katie thought.  
"There's no point in having the two top scorers in the league on separate lines… I think you and Naomi would make a great team and-"  
"But Effy and Ems play attack with me, _we're _a good team!"

"I want to put Naomi in as centre and you can take left attack…That leg of yours still isn't right Katie luv. You know a centre has to be everywhere at once and-"  
"I can't believe this!" Katie spat, glaring daggers at the blonde. "I worked my arse off to make centre and you're just giving my spot away to her? And Effy's left attack-"  
"I'll play second line. I don't mind." Effy shrugged, trying to diffuse the situation.  
"Katie I-" Naomi started, deciding it would be more hassle than it was worth to accept the position on the team.  
"No! It's not fucking fair!" Katie actually stamped her foot as she confronted her father, and Naomi would have laughed had the oldest twin not looked so furious.

"Language missy!" Rob snapped, losing his own temper at having his eldest back answering him in front of his team. "You want to win so hard this season, well we won't do it with an injured centre! I'm sorry Katie, maybe when your leg's better we can review it, but for now I want Naomi as centre!" Naomi felt Katie's gaze burning through her and she knew there and then that refusing to play wouldn't change anything. Katie already had more than enough reasons to hate her, and being overlooked by her own father in favour of the blonde would only add fuel to the fire. She'd be lucky if she made it through the next practise without Katie killing her.


	6. Chapter 6

"Jesus Christ, Katie! We're on the same team!" Naomi growled as she picked herself up off the ice for the umpteenth time since they'd started the practise session. She'd been training with the Pirates for almost two weeks and their first game was looming. It was against one of the lower teams in the league and would be a walk in the park for the Pirates; if Katie could stop trying to take out their own centre. She hadn't taken her position change very well and apart from trying to kill her on the ice she was having nothing to do with Naomi Campbell.  
"You don't look like a Pirate to me." Katie sneered as she skated past, chasing Sophia for the puck. She gave the defender a particularly hard shove, sending her crashing on to her arse the same as Naomi.  
"Bitch." Sophia muttered, nowhere near loud enough for Katie to actually hear her.

Naomi chuckled as she got back up and held out her hand to help the other girl up before moving over to the penalty box for sanctuary. "She wasn't this bad when we _were _on separate teams."  
"She's just pissed off because she's not Queen Bee anymore and she knows it." Sophia grinned at her, something close to admiration on her face. "We'll win this year for sure with you on our team."  
"Thanks." Naomi felt her cheeks going red and she hoped the other girl would just put it down to the cold. Sophia had become something of a second shadow, trying to talk her home after college and warming up with her at practise; Naomi had no intentions of giving the other girl the wrong idea so she'd tried to keep her distance. "It takes a team to win a season though, we need Katie on our side; not trying to kill us."

"Come on Campbell, you can take one for the team, can't you?" Effy winked as she appeared beside them wearing her usual mischievous smile.  
"Leave her alone Effy." Emily scorned as she joined them in the sin bin. The youngest twin had been something of a guardian angel for the blonde, trying to block Katie's attacks both on and off the ice. "Katie will calm down, eventually…maybe. Sorry." She shrugged sheepishly as Naomi's exasperated eye roll. She was going to be dead before she even got a game against another team.

"Are we having a fucking mother's meeting or a practise?" Katie shouted from the other side of the ice, glaring at Naomi in particular. "We've got a game tomorrow in case you've all forgotten and we look like shit!"  
"Maybe if you didn't keep trying to take out half the team?" Emily shot back as she pulled her helmet back on and picked up her stick. She was getting pretty sick of her twin's attitude. All she talked about at home was how Campbell had stolen her spot.  
"It's not my fault some people can't stay on their skates!"  
"Alright girls!" Rob finally stepped in to stop them arguing as he blew his whistle. "That's enough for today. Go home, have a good night's kip and come back ready for the game tomorrow afternoon!"

It was a Friday night and the practise had felt particularly long with Katie at everyone's throats, so the girls were more than happy to call it a night and hit the changing rooms. Naomi skipped the shower in favour of slipping away before Katie could have another go at her. She loved the game and part of her was glad Emily had talked her in to playing for the Pirates, but she didn't need the hassle from Katie. If she hadn't been as a stubborn as a mule she probably would have quit; but pride kept her from giving Katie exactly what she wanted. She'd just ride it out and hope to make it through the season. With her kit hastily packed away in to her bag she almost made it out of the door scot-free. Almost.  
"Hey, Naoms! Wait up, I'll walk with you!" Sophia caught her just as she was leaving, her kit bag already slung over her shoulder. The blonde gritted her teeth as she forced a smile.  
"Great."

"I don't care what she says, that girl is a fucking muff diver!" Katie snapped as she watched Sophia and Naomi leaving together. Emily rolled her eyes behind her sister's back, shaking her head at Effy who was smirking.  
"Don't knock it till you've tried it Kay."  
"Eww! Eff, you're my best friend and Emily's my sister, and I love you both, but that is just sick." She slammed her locker door shut with enough force to rattle the whole row of lockers. "Ems, take my stuff home and cover with mum and dad for me will you? I'm going to see Danny." She beamed at them both as though the third-rate footballer was a catch and flounced out of the changing room; trying to hide the slight limp she had from the searing pain in her ankle. The extra practise sessions for the upcoming game had taken a lot out of her, especially since she'd spent most of them targeting Campbell. The other girl was fast on the ice, exactly what a centre needed to be, and Katie had been struggling to try and outshine her to get her spot back.

"Hey babes." Danny leered at her from his car, the ridiculous yellow convertible that was very much compensation for another, smaller, aspect of his life.  
"Hi." Katie grumbled, already sick of him before he'd said three words. She'd been meaning to dump him, but with spending so much time training for the new season she hadn't had a chance to meet anyone else. She didn't want to look like some single loser so she had persevered, putting up with the slobbering idiot that was pawing her the second she was in the car. "Leave it, yeah babe? I need a shower." She had planned to go back to Danny's and get changed before they went out to dinner, but the footballer had other ideas, his hand trying to slip under the waistband of her sweatpants.  
"Come on babe, I'm gagging here."  
"No!" Katie slapped at his hand, sick of him treating her like she was a piece of meat. "I said fuck off!" She gave up slapping him and slammed her fist down on his chest instead. He still didn't get the message, trying to press his full weight down on her as his hands went to the buckle of his belt.  
"Don't be such a fucking prude babe!"  
"FUCK OFF!" She kicked at him, trying to dislodge his heavy weight from on top of her. She felt panic welling up inside of her, desperation replacing the anger. She was used to being the one in the control, the one calling the shots. Katie Fitch wasn't a victim.

"Hey!" Danny jumped as something slammed down on the bonnet of his precious car. It was Naomi's hockey stick and she'd raised it to strike a second blow, this time aiming it at Danny rather than the car. "Get the fuck off of her!" With Danny's attention on the blonde, Katie brought her knee up to his groin, slamming it home with a crushing force. The older man's eyes rolled to the back of his head as he cupped his balls, groaning in agony. Katie out of the car and stood beside Naomi as Danny cursed them both.  
"What the fuck? You stupid fucking bitch! I- Argh!" Katie had taken Naomi's stick from her while he'd been ranting and she brought it crashing down against the side of his head. His hands instantly went to his head, protecting it from another blow. It was Katie's weapon of choice though and she knew what she was doing with it. One hit had been enough to split the skin above his eyebrow. He'd probably need stitches.

"I said no you fucking wanker! Now fuck off before I tell the papers what a fucking pencil dick you've got!" Katie roared at him, all traces of the cowering girl that Naomi had spotted in the car gone. Danny didn't need to be told twice, starting the car and cursing her under his breath he reversed out of the car park and sped off in the wrong gear, his expensive car screeching in protest. Katie felt the stick she was holding being gently tugged out of her hand; Naomi took it back more for her safety than Katie's. Not sure what to say to each other the two girls just stood there.  
"Thanks." Katie finally broke the awkward silence. She'd been hating on Naomi for almost a fortnight, yet the other girl had stepped up to help her when most people would have just kept walking. "I could have handled him myself though." Her pride won out and she crossed her arms over her chest, like Naomi had done the wrong thing by stepping in to help. The blonde brushed it off with a shrug, not wanting to get in to yet another fight with the other girl. She hefted her kit bag over her shoulder as she shot Katie a patronizing smile.  
"I know you could have, Killer."

"Weren't you walking with Sophia anyway?" Katie huffed, trying to get back on top. Her cheeks were still flushed from trying to fight Danny off and her hair was a mess. She felt completely unnerved and off balance around the other girl. She didn't like the idea of owing her anything.  
"Forgot my keys." Naomi shrugged, holding them up as if to prove a point.  
"Convenient." Katie pointed out with a smirk, knowing full well the blonde had lied to ditch her stalker. "There's a coffee shop around the corner." It was the closest thing to an invitation Naomi was going to get and she fell in to step with the smaller girl.

"So, how's the ankle?"  
"Sore." Katie admitted a little begrudgingly as she added chocolate sprinkles to her macchiato. Naomi sat on the other side of the table, nursing a plain coffee. "Dad's gym has a physiotherapist on staff, he's been helping with it, but it gets pretty bad after training." Naomi knew how she felt. Her wrist was aching from gripping her stick and slamming it against Danny's car hadn't helped it much.  
"They had to re-break my wrist over the summer." Naomi rotated the offended joint, trying to loosen some of the stiffness. "The cold doesn't really help it much."  
"You should use a compression strap." Katie informed her, talking from experience. The game of ice hockey wasn't for the faint hearted and playing as aggressively as Katie often resulted in a lot of bumps, bruises and breaks.  
"Thanks, I'll try one." The carried on the small talk over their coffees, the conversation keeping to safe subjects like tactics and training schedules. It seemed Rob kept the girls to a pretty strict training regime during the season. Naomi's fitness had never been that regimented and she'd slacked off over the summer since she'd decided to quit playing. She was feeling the pain on the ice as a result.

"I think you've chipped this." Katie scrutinised the blade of Naomi's stick as the conversation died off. Naomi shrugged it off; it was only one of her training sticks.  
"If it was my Bauer Supreme, I'd be crying…and finishing the fucker off." She laughed as she took the stick back and zipped it in to its bag. "So that was Danny, huh? He seems…"  
"Like a wanker?"  
"Took the words right out of my mouth." The blonde grinned.  
"Yeah, well he's officially dumped. Fucking prick wouldn't know what an orgasm was if it bit him on the arse." Katie's frankness had the other girl choking on her coffee. "So what's going on with you and psycho Sophia?"  
"Ugh, she's following me like a fucking puppy." Naomi wasn't used to having girls following her about, meeting her at her locker in the mornings and offering to carry her books for her.  
"So you're not interested then? But you are…"  
"I'm in to people." Naomi cut her off. "But no, I'm not in to Sophia. I haven't really been out with_ anyone _in a while. Hockey's just always come first."  
"Yeah, well just keep away from Sophia _and _Mandy. Those defence dykes have both got screws loose."  
"Because they're gay, or because they want Emily?" _And not you, _the unspoken accusation was clear in her voice and a smirk tugged at Katie's lips in response.  
"Both."

Naomi didn't get a chance to reply as her phone went off. Taking it out of her pocket she found a text from Emily and she almost laughed at the message. "Ems just invited me over to watch a movie with her and Eff, apparently your parents are out to dinner and you're with Danny so it's safe."  
"Fuck it, nothing better to do anyway." Katie finished off what was left of her coffee. "Come on Campbell, you can walk me home." Naomi didn't remember saying she was actually going to go, but she got up and followed Katie out of the coffee shop anyway.  
"I need to go home first, I still need a shower-"  
"Have one at ours. Don't worry; the little perv won't be in to peek on you."  
"Emily?" Naomi frowned, not quite following the other girl.  
"No, James." Katie laughed. "Our little shit of a brother. He'll be at his friends; we always get the house to ourselves on Fridays."

Sure enough when they got to Katie's house there was only Effy and Emily waiting for them inside. The pair were curled up on the sofa and looked surprised to see Katie walking in to the living room, especially since Naomi followed her in. "I thought you were out with Danny?" Emily quizzed, not bothering to lift her head up from Effy's chest as the other girl ran her fingers through her hair.  
"I dumped him, he was getting boring. I found Campbell at the end of the street." The lie slipped easily out of Katie's lips and she shot Naomi a glare, daring her to say any different.  
"Uh…yeah. I was having coffee with Sophia when I got your text Em, do you think I could use your shower?" The blonde had finally just seemed to get herself out of Katie's bad books, she wasn't about to put herself back in them by admitting what she had interrupted between Danny and the oldest twin.  
"Sure." Emily sat herself up and gave Effy a quick kiss on the cheek before walking over to Naomi and grabbing her kitbag to put it in the cupboard in the hall. "Follow me; I'll get you a towel."

"Finally dumped Danny then? Something more appealing come your way?" Effy teased, earning herself a death glare from the older twin.  
"Not a fucking word Stonem!" The smaller girl snapped as she threw herself down on to the sofa beside her. "What are you doing for dinner anyway? I'm starved."  
"I think Ems is going to Cook." Effy replied, her smirk widening as she watched the other girl wrinkle her nose in distaste.  
"Eugh, let's order something in before she comes back downstairs."

"I was going to make pasta!" Emily grumbled as Effy and Katie plated up the pizzas they'd ordered while Emily had been showing Naomi the bathroom. The blonde was freshly showered with her wet hair pulled back in to a ponytail, happily picking at the pizza Katie had just handed her.  
"Last time you made pasta you burnt a hole through the pan." Katie argued.  
"And set the curtains on fire." Effy added, though she softened the remark with a kiss.  
"Fine." Emily relented, picking up a plate of pizza for herself. "I'm still choosing the film though!"  
"If it's Mighty Ducks again, I swear I'm leaving you." Effy teased and from the blush that spread across the smaller girl's cheeks Naomi could tell she had been about to suggest it.

The four of them took their plates in to the living room and settled down in front of the TV as Emily rifled through their DVD collection, suggesting films that Effy and Katie both shot down, until she came to some romantic comedy that the other girls agreed to watch. Effy and Emily curled up on one sofa, leaving Katie and Naomi on the other; though they were far from curled up as they sat on opposite ends. Katie didn't try and attack her at any point during the night, either physically or verbally, so Naomi guessed it was something of an improvement.

Halfway through the second film Naomi realised the time and she stretched out, intending to get up to leave; sometime during the evening though Katie had stretched out on the sofa, draping her legs over the blonde. She grumbled as Naomi tried to get up. "I should get going."  
"Stay?" Emily suggested from over on the other sofa, where she was practically lying on top of a half asleep Effy. "We've got the game tomorrow anyway. Eff can drop you off at home for your stuff tomorrow? Can't you babe?"  
"Mhm." Effy agreed, though with Emily on top of her Naomi guessed the other girl would agree to just about anything.  
"Uh, ok then." She reluctantly settled back down, not sure whether her and Katie's newfound truce would last the night; she half expected the other girl to take an ice skate to her throat.

They moved upstairs to the twins' room before their parents came home. Rob would lecture them if he found half of his team up late the night before a game. The room was just like any other teenage bedroom, the walls lined with posters and the floor littered with clothes. "Don't worry; it's comfier than it looks." Emily reassured the blonde as she finished placing a sleeping bag over the inflatable mattress she'd put down on the floor between her and Katie's beds.  
"It's great, thanks." Naomi climbed under the covers, wearing a pair of Emily's pyjamas. Effy was already tucked up in Emily's bed and Katie was in her own.  
"Make sure you get a good night's sleep." The older twin grumbled as she pulled the covers up to her chin. "We need to start this season with a win."

The girls were pretty worn out by their practise session and it didn't take them long to fall asleep. Naomi didn't stay asleep for long though, she fell asleep on her wrist and woke up with cramp. "Fuck." She hissed as she clutched at the aching joint, the pain shooting up and down her arm and in to her fingers. "Fuckfuckfuck."  
"What's going on?" Katie rubbed at her eyes as she sat up and glared at the cursing blonde.  
"Fell asleep on my wrist." Naomi was biting back tears with clenched teeth. She'd definitely overdone it at practise. Her fingers were tingling.

She expected the other girl to lie back down and go to sleep, but Katie surprised her by pushing back the bedcovers and getting to her feet. She padded silently over to the dresser in the corner of the room, like someone used to sneaking around in the middle of the night. She pulled a tube of something out of the top drawer before making her way back over to the airbed. She dropped down beside the blonde and took the cap off the tube of muscle rub she'd retrieved from the drawer. It was one of those cooling ointments and the gel she squeezed in to her hand was bright blue. She reached out to take Naomi's arm and the blonde stiffened. "Don't be a pussy." Katie grumbled, her Florence Nightingale act needing a little work. Naomi relented though and gingerly held out her wrist to her. Katie's fingers were surprisingly soft as she worked the ointment in to Naomi's wrist.

She kept massaging the muscles in her wrist long after the ointment was rubbed in and cooling the pain. The relief was immense; Katie really knew what she was doing. "I've done some work with Ted the physio at the gym." She answered Naomi's silent question. "I'm thinking of getting in to it after college. How's that feel?"  
"Great…good." She cleared her throat as her voice cracked. Katie's fingers were firmly massaging the palm of Naomi's hand and the tingling that had been in her fingers had moved further south. A _lot _further south. She bit her lip as she looked over at Katie; the other girl was deep in concentration, lost in what she was doing; which was a good thing, because if she could see the way Naomi was looking at her, if she could hear the thoughts that were running through the blonde's head she really _would _end up murdering her. Naomi felt a fluttering in her stomach and as Katie looked up from her hand, meeting her eyes, she knew she was screwed.

"Katie, I…" She faltered, not sure what to say to the girl who had just caught her checking her out. "Fuck, I-" Her eyes widened as Katie sat forward, pressing her lips against Naomi's. By the time she got over the shock and moved her own lips to kiss her back Katie pulled away. Her eyes were as wide as Naomi's and she looked as pale as a sheet. Her mouth opened and closed, but she couldn't find any words.  
"Katie-" The second Naomi spoke it broke whatever trance the other girl had been in and she wrenched herself away from her with a face like thunder.  
"Tell and I'll fucking kill you, Campbell! Got it?" She growled at the bewildered blonde before darting back in to her bed. She rolled over to face the wall and pulled the cover over her head, biting back the sob that threatened to escape her lips. She'd really gone and fucked things up.

"Katie?" Naomi found her own voice as she knelt by the side of the older twin's bed and reached out pull the covers back. Katie's grip on them tightened.  
"Go to sleep Campbell. We've got a big game tomorrow." And just like that she pretended that nothing had happened; that the ever so straight Katie Fitch hadn't just kissed another girl.

**A/N: Sorry about the delay in updating this, I'm behind on all of my fics at the moment and desperately trying to catch up. This one's been a bit of a slow burn, but now that I'm in to the actual Kaomi and I know where I'm going with this I should be updating a lot more often. **


	7. Chapter 7

Katie lay on her side on the edge of her bed, her eyes half open and resting on the blonde lying on the floor. She'd been awake for close to an hour, drifting back in and out of sleep as she lay frowning at the blonde. She had kissed her. Fucking _kissed _her! What the hell was she supposed to say to her? What if she told Emily? Or that nut Sophia? What if she told everyone? Katie couldn't let that happen. Climbing out of bed she knelt down beside the blonde and shook her awake. In hindsight waking the other girl up in the middle of the night had probably been a mistake; especially given the scowl that was on her face.

Naomi's sleep had been pretty restless and she was startled awake only to find Katie glaring down at her. She panicked, forgetting where she was and she almost screamed; until Katie clamped a hand over her mouth. In hindsight that hadn't been a good idea either. Naomi tried to sit up and at the same time Emily stirred in her bed, grumbling something in her sleep as she cuddled in closer to her girlfriend. Katie panicked as Naomi pulled at her hand and she ended up climbing on top of her, straddling her waist and using both hands to cover her mouth. "Fucking chill!" She hissed at her, using her weight and her knees to keep the blonde pinned down as she tried to buck against her. "Just chill!" She waited for the other girl to stop struggling before she slowly took her hands away from her mouth.

"What the fuck are you-" Naomi started, wide awake from Katie pouncing on her. She was all too aware of the other's girls legs wrapped around her hips and the memory of Katie kissing her was still fresh in her mind. Her protests were cut off as Katie covered her mouth again. The blonde's breath was hot and ragged against her hand as she scowled up at the older twin.  
"Listen." Katie growled at her. "What happened earlier, it was a fucking mistake, and if you tell _anyone _I will fuck you up Campbell, got it?" With Katie's hand still at her mouth she couldn't answer her, so she nodded instead. She wasn't about to push Katie 'Killer' Fitch, if she'd thought she had a screw loose before, then she was pretty damn certain of it after Katie's predawn ambush.

"Good. We don't want any more _accidents _on the ice do we?_" _She got back to her feet with a pointed look to make sure her meaning was clear, and then padded over to her dresser to get some clothes. "I'm going for a jog, why don't you get some more sleep? Big game later!" She smiled as though nothing had happened and slipped out of the room, leaving Naomi to flop back down on to the airbed with a sigh. Her head was spinning and she was still trying to process everything that had just happened.

Katie changed in the bathroom and crept downstairs to let herself out for an early morning jog to get her going. She found her dad sitting in the kitchen with the morning paper and a mug of coffee. He smiled up at her as she filled a glass with orange juice. "Be careful on that ankle if you're going out jogging. Don't want my star player hurting herself do I?"  
"Don't worry; Campbell's tucked up in bed." Katie shot back, still angry with him for dropping her as Centre. She knew he was right to move her because of his ankle, but that didn't mean she had to agree with it.  
"Katie luv-"  
"Forget it Dad. I'll be back soon." She kissed his cheek, she was still a daddy's girl after all, and she slipped her earphones in before heading out.

The sun was just peaking over the horizon and the air was crisp and cold. Katie started out slow, not wanting to put too much pressure on her ankle. She usually started the day with a jog a few times a week, though she'd mostly just wanted to get out of the house; away from Naomi. She wasn't gay. She didn't go around kissing girls like Emily did. That wasn't her; it was all Campbell's fault. The bitch was just messing with her head. She spent an hour jogging, clearing her head and calming herself back down, before she headed back home.

The house was wide awake by the time she got back and she was greeted by the smell of bacon that set her stomach rumbling. Her mother always made them a cooked breakfast on match days, to start the day off right. She walked in to the dining room and found the other girls already eating. Her brother James and her dad were eating at the breakfast bar in the kitchen. Her mother offered her a tight smile as she sat a plate down in front of her. "Good morning sweetie, am I feeding anymore of the team this morning?"  
"Sorry Mrs Fitch, I-" Naomi started, looking a little sheepish, but the older woman cut her off before she could continue.  
"It's fine Naomi, I just wish the girls would have told me you were staying over, that's all; and please, call me Jenna. Is your bacon ok?" The twins' mother hated having houseguests over that she didn't know, but good breeding and polished manners meant she was the perfect host as she fussed over the blonde.  
"It's great, thanks Jenna. Mum's a vegetarian, so Kieran and I don't get bacon that often."

"Kieran? Is he your step father?" Jenna asked politely, making small talk as she took her seat beside Katie and sipped at her coffee.  
"Uh, yeah, he's the one who got me in to hockey."  
"And you play Centre? Like Katie?" The blonde almost choked on her toast; the dig at her taking Katie's spot was less than subtle, yet Jenna's polite smile never wavered. It was clear where Katie got her attitude from. Naomi had plenty of her own, though she knew when to use it and when to back down.  
"Yeah I do; though Katie will probably give me a run for my money when her ankle's better."  
"Count on it." Katie shot back grimly, glaring at the blonde to make it clear she wasn't going to back down. She was going to get her position back, one way or another. Beside her Emily rolled her eyes, offering Naomi an apologetic smile for her mother and sister.

The blonde managed to make it through the rest of breakfast in one piece and was more than a little relieved when Effy offered to take her home to get ready for the match. She had her pads and skates with her, but she needed her stick and the uniform Rob had ordered her after her first training session; the coach had been pretty convinced she would play for them, even with his daughter ready to cut her throat. "You ok?" Effy quizzed as the blonde stared absently out of the window, she was being quieter than Effy and that was no easy achievement.  
"What? Oh, yeah, fine." She brushed her hair back from her face, her thoughts a million miles away from the upcoming game. Katie had kissed her. Actually _kissed _her, on the lips and everything! It hadn't been some peck on the cheek or an accidental meeting of lips as Katie leant in to check the blonde's wrist. She had deliberately kissed her and Naomi had no idea what to think about either Katie or the kiss.

Katie was an attractive girl, both of the twins were, but Naomi hadn't really thought about her like _that. _Katie Fitch had been a thorn in her side for over two years, with her roughhousing on the ice, but she had never given the other girl more than a passing thought; but that was before she had been forced to go to the same college as her, to play on the same team and associate with the same group of friends. There was no escaping the other girl and since Katie had kissed her she couldn't even escape her inside her head. She'd tossed and turned for half the night, unable to shake the memory of Katie's soft full lips and the taste of her lip balm. Only Katie Fitch would put Lip Balm on for bed.

"You sure? I know breakfast with the Fitches can be pretty traumatising." Effy smirked as they pulled up outside Naomi's house. "Even if you're not fucking one of her daughters." Naomi let out a strangled, almost hysterical, laugh. Effy had hit a little too close to the bone without realising it. She could still feel her cheeks burning from her morning wakeup call from the older twin. Katie may have been threatening her, but Naomi's attention had been elsewhere. It wasn't every day that she was woken up by a gorgeous girl straddling her waist.  
"Fine! I'm fine!" She repeated, maybe if she said it enough times it would be true. "I'm just going to grab my stuff, I'll be five minutes." She slammed the car door shut behind her and raced in to the house. She grabbed her uniform and shoved it in to her kitbag before pulling her stick out from under her bed. There was no one else in the house, but Kieran had promised to be there for the game, so she scribbled him a quick note to remind him what time the faceoff was.

The Pirates were all going to the rink an hour early to change and warm up, so Effy drove straight over from Naomi's. They walked in to the changing room just in time for Naomi to catch Katie standing in little more than her underwear and her shin guards. "Fuck…" She felt as though the wind had been knocked right out of her by one of Katie's more dubious challenges for the puck.  
"'Fuck are you staring at Campbell?" Katie glared at her as she pulled on her shoulder pads. "They're called tits; you have them too, yeah? Fucking dyke…" She muttered under her breath as Naomi just stood there like a deer caught in the headlights. Naomi felt a red hot anger building up inside of her. She'd started playing hockey as a way of controlling her anger, as a way to focus it on something more productive than just lashing out at other people; but no amount of time on the ice could cool her down as she advanced on the smaller girl. Katie's arms were halfway through the sleeves of her jersey when Naomi got right up in her face.  
"I'm the dyke? That's funny-"  
"Back off Campbell!" Katie shoved her back, almost sending her sprawling in to Sophia. The other girl caught her and helped steady her on her feet while the rest of the locker room exploded.  
"Katie! What the fuck?" Emily scowled at her twin like she had a screw loose.  
"Fucking nutter." Many sneered, firmly taking Naomi's corner; though it was more to piss off Katie than to actually defend the blonde.

Katie ignored them all as she glared at Naomi, trying to hide just how terrified she felt inside at the prospect of the other girl telling on her. "Just keep the fuck out of my way Campbell!" She skulked off, slamming one of the locker doors shut as she passed the other girl. Emily went to walk after her, but Effy stopped her with a slight shake of her head and quickly followed after the tiny hurricane that was a pissed of Katie Fitch. She found her sitting in the back row of the stands, watching the Zamboni going over the ice.  
"Want to talk about it?" Effy broke the silence as she took a seat beside her, sparking up as a cigarette as she waited for her to answer. They were too far up for anyone to notice, but Katie still wrinkled her nose at the smell of smoke. She hated cigarettes and Effy knew it.  
"No." She sulked, keeping her eyes glued on the machine going up and down the ice. The first few away fans were just starting to file in to the stands. The home crowd would usually start to turn up a little closer to the faceoff. "I just need to clear my head before the game. I'll be fine, just go get changed."  
"Okay." Effy nodded, giving in far too easily for Katie's liking. "But we're talking about it later."

She left Katie where she was and returned to the locker room. Naomi was already changed and she had a face like thunder as Effy approached her. "What's going on with you and Katie?" She tried to keep the accusation out of her tone, but she knew Katie better than she knew the blonde and her concern was for her friend.  
"Nothing! It's not my fault she's fucking bipolar or something!"  
"Take it easy on her Naomi; she's under a lot of stress…more than you know."  
"Yeah?" She finished yanking on the laces of her skates to get them tight enough as she met Effy's eyes. "I've got plenty of stress of my own Eff; I don't need her on my fucking case all season!"  
"Just…give her a chance, ok?" With that last remark she made her way back over beside Emily to finish getting changed. The atmosphere in the locker room was thick enough to cut with a knife and it didn't get any easier as Katie walked back in shortly before they were due to go out on to the ice.

As the captain of the team it was her job to rally the troops, so she stood by the door and shouted for them all to shut up. "Right you lot, this is it, first game of the season. We can beat this lot in our sleep, yeah? So let's get out there, work as a team, and get that win!" The rest of the team cheered, buying in to her team spirit. Naomi had a feeling that she was going to be spending the whole game watching her back; and it wasn't the other team she would be looking out for. After Katie's speech she led them all out to the tunnel that led to the player's entrance to the rink and Rob gave a speech of his own about working together as a team. By the time she was sitting on the bench in the player's box Naomi was ready to kill the next person who said the word 'team'. The rink was pretty full for a women's game and the noise was deafening.

Since they were the starting line, Katie, Naomi, Emily, Panda, Sophia and Mandy were all squeezed on to the front bench. Katie was so close she might as well have been sitting on Naomi's knee. The blonde couldn't concentrate on a word Rob was saying to them all. She couldn't stop thinking about the kiss. She was so out of it that she missed the others standing to take to the ice and Sophia had to nudge her to get off the bench. "You ok?" She smiled at the blonde, putting a hand on her shoulder in a friendly gesture. Katie caught it and sneered, shooting Naomi a look of pure malice. Naomi almost tripped over her own feet getting out of the box as she realised why Katie had been such a bitch about Sophia; why she had told her who she could and couldn't be friends with. "Careful." Sophia laughed, patting her on the back as she let Naomi skate ahead of her. Katie was still glaring at them and Naomi felt cold hard realisation wash down on her. Katie was jealous.

Naomi felt numb as she ran through everything in her head, examining every conversation and every interaction they'd ever had, trying to figure out whether she was imagining things or if the super straight Katie Fitch wasn't as straight as she liked to think. Her head definitely wasn't in the game, even as she lined up for the faceoff, the referee poised to drop the puck and Katie and Emily waiting expectantly on either side of her. She won the puck, but her pass to Emily was intercepted by the other team's left attack. The game went downhill from there, and they ended up losing 2-0. It would have been worse had Panda, Mandy and Sophia not kept up a good defence. Katie and Naomi had spent most of their training sessions taking shots at each other, when it came down to it they just couldn't gel together on the ice. They were working as single units rather than a team and their offensive plays had suffered as a result. Rob had picked up on it in the second period and he'd pulled Naomi, but Katie had still been all over the place so they had both spent most of the last period warming the bench.

Katie slipped away before the final whistle. She stormed in to the locker room, throwing her helmet clean across the room before yanking her jersey and pads off. She was seething over losing a game that should have been a walk in the park. She knew it was down to her and Naomi being at each other's throats; if they'd just worked harder on working together during practises they would have won without much effort. If she hadn't of kissed the other girl then they would have both been on their game. She slammed her fist against her locker, cursing herself for being so stupid. "Katie?" She jumped as she heard Naomi come up behind her. She couldn't deal with the blonde. Her fists were clenched and she was practically shaking with anger; it was no time for them to be having a little chat.

"Just leave it, yeah?" Her voice came out choked and she couldn't look her in the eye as she pulled a T-shirt on over her sports bra and tried to walk past her.  
"We need to talk! Katie!" Naomi snapped at her, grabbing her arm to stop her walking away from her. She'd been off her game because of what had happened between her and Katie the previous night, and Katie acting like it hadn't happened wasn't helping matters. The blonde felt like she was going out of her mind and she needed answers. "You kissed me-" She was cut off as Katie turned around and slammed her up against the wall. She expected another threat, or maybe even an actual physical blow; but what she got instead was definitely unexpected. Katie's lips found Naomi's and it was a case of dejavu as the smaller girl started kissing her only to pull away again. Naomi didn't let her. Her hand found the back of Katie's head as she kissed her back; suddenly desperate for something she hadn't realised she even wanted.

Katie brought her hands up between them and pushed on Naomi's shoulders to get her away from her. Her shoulder pads took most of the force, but she was still in her skates and she stumbled back against the bench. Her eyes were wide and questioning as she stared up at the oldest twin, unsure what the hell was going on. "I'm sorry." Katie mumbled before making a hasty retreat for the door. Just as she reached it the locker door opened and the rest of the team filed in, looking as downtrodden and dejected as Naomi felt. Katie barged past Effy on her way out, barely aware she was even there as she tried to get away from the blonde. Effy shot Naomi a questioning look before following her back out.

She found her back in the bleachers, her ice skates sitting on the seat beside hers as she sat with her knees tucked up to her chest. Her eyes were red and watery and Effy gave her a minute to wipe at them before she asked the obvious question. "What's wrong? Is it Naomi? You two have been at each other's throats more than usual-"  
"I kissed her…twice." Katie's admission left the other girl silent. She shifted so that she had her arms wrapped around the smaller girl and Katie's head quickly found her shoulder as she started sobbing in to it; the pressure of dealing with Naomi, the team and everything else had been building for a while and once she started crying she found she couldn't stop. Effy held her close and rubbed her back, soothing her until she calmed down enough to talk. "I fucked up Eff!"  
"Hey, no you haven't. We can sort this." Effy held her chin, staring her best friend in the eye, trying to reassure her that everything would be ok. "You've been eye-fucking Naomi across the ice for two years; this was bound to happen sooner or later. We'll deal with it."


	8. Chapter 8

"This is child abuse!" Katie grumbled as she pulled tightly on the laces of her ice skates and glared daggers at her father. "How come the rest of the team aren't here?" She was sitting on the bleachers, half asleep and half frozen. The ice rink wouldn't be open to the public for hours and Rob intended to get some training in with her.  
"Because the rest of the team aren't my daughters!" Rob snapped back, still annoyed with how his eldest daughter had played in the previous night's game.

"Emily is and _she's_ still in bed." Katie huffed, though she knew full well she was the one who had screwed up, not Emily. As usual she was just trying to deflect the blame on to someone else.  
"Emily was on her game last night! It was you and Campbell who were off. I thought we'd sorted this Katie, you know how good that girl can be for this team; and at the end of the day that's what you are, a team! You and Naomi can take the Pirates to the top this season." He lectured her; unaware that Katie was barely listening to him. Her thoughts had gone to Naomi the second he had mentioned her name. She had screwed up so badly with Campbell that it was almost laughable. Things had genuinely been thawing out between them and they'd started to gel together in their practise sessions, Saturday's game had practically been in the bag, but then Katie had gone and kissed her and everything had fallen apart.

Effy had tried to calm Katie down after the game, but she hadn't been in the mood to be lectured at. Effy was the only one who knew Katie wasn't entirely straight and she had sworn her best friend to secrecy. Of course the all-seeing Effy had picked up on the way the oldest twin had watched Naomi on the ice and had easily put the pieces of the puzzle together when Katie had gone out of her way to target the blonde so ruthlessly in their matches; long before Naomi had ever joined their team. Whereas Katie had been quite friendly with players on rival teams, she had done everything she could to create the animosity between her and Naomi; she had wanted to push a wedge between her and the blonde, to make sure Naomi never got too close. She had never wanted the other girl to know about her pathetic crush on her.

"We've got a week until our next game so I want you and Campbell sticking together like glue until you can work together!" Her dad was still rambling on and she'd blanked out half of his big speech so she just nodded along like she'd been listening. He was right anyway; she had to put her feelings for Naomi behind her if she wanted the team to do well.  
"I get it Dad, I'll try harder." She agreed as she forced a smile and was rewarded with a big grin from Rob.  
"That's what I want to hear! Now go warm up a bit, Naomi will be here soon."  
"What?" Katie suddenly got the feeling she had missed something important. It was 6am on a Sunday morning, why would Campbell be at the rink?  
"I asked Naomi to come practise with you. I figured if we get you two together for a few extra practises this week we'll be ready for next Friday's game."  
"Great." Katie huffed, though her sarcasm was lost on her father who grinned as he clapped her on the shoulder before heading to his office.  
"That's the spirit kiddo!"

Rolling her eyes at him Katie finished tying her laces and set off on to the ice, waiting for the inevitable showdown with Campbell. The other girl had tried to call her after the game, but Katie had ignored her phone and gone out to a club with some of the girls from college. She'd rolled home around 1am, after pulling some bloke with platinum blonde hair, and her dad had woken her up at five to tell her she was going in to the rink with him to practise. She felt tired and hungover and even warming up with a few laps of the rink was killing her. At least the laps were warming her body up and she no longer felt the bite of the cold air. She had her headphones in and the volume cranked up on her iPod with some heavy dance music to get her moving.

She was so lost in the music that she failed to notice Naomi arriving. The blonde slipped in to the bleachers, nervous about letting Katie know she was there. When Rob had called her the night before and asked her to practise with Katie at 6am on a Sunday morning it had been her idea of a living hell, but Katie had ignored her attempts to call and text her, so she had no other choice but to turn up at the rink if she wanted to talk to her. She pulled on her skates and managed to get on to the ice before the other girl noticed her. She stopped abruptly, her face a mixture of fear and anxiety before she forced a more neutral expression. "Campbell." She nodded at her by way of a greeting and Naomi nodded back. She decided to play along with Katie's little 'it-never-happened' game, for a while at least. She knew if she went in all guns blazing Katie would flip out on her again. So she'd play it by ear, hoping that Katie would bring it up first.

She fell in with the other girl as she carried on lapping the rink and the heavy silence between them started to thin out after a few laps. "So my dad wants us to work on passing or something." Katie was the first one to talk and Naomi had to bite back a smirk at being right.  
"Is that where you actually give someone else the puck?" Naomi mock-frowned, as though puzzled by the alien concept. Katie laughed despite herself, the action lighting up her face. She wasn't wearing any makeup, having expected to be alone at the rink, and her hair was tied back, making her look younger than usual. She was gorgeous and, though it was hardly a revelation, it suddenly hit the blonde, practically knocking the wind right out of her. She hadn't been able to stop thinking about the kiss they'd shared since Friday night and their second kiss after the game had only served to make things worse. Naomi had unexpectedly found herself craving something she hadn't even realised she wanted.

"Very funny Campbell." She rolled her eyes at the other girl, but there was still a small smile tugging at her lips. "We both know how to pass a fucking puck. We just need to learn how to work together. I fucked up last night, in more ways than one; but this team means a lot to me. I don't want to let them down again, so we need to find a way to put _everything _behind us and work as a team, yeah?"  
"I can do that." Naomi shrugged and held out her hand for the other girl. "Clean slate?"  
"Clean slate." Katie nodded, though her hand lingered in Naomi's for a little longer than was necessary before she pulled it back. "Let's grab our gear and start on some passing; if you're lucky I'll even teach you how to take a hit."  
"You've been trying to teach me that for two years." Naomi laughed, enjoying how easy things could be between them when Katie wasn't being a bitch. When the other girl let her guard down they actually got on quite well. Naomi wanted to bring up the kiss again, to find out why Katie had even kissed her once, never mind twice, but she knew that would break whatever truce they had just agreed to call. If she and Katie really were playing for the same team then the other girl didn't seem ready to admit it and pushing her wouldn't get Naomi anywhere. Letting it go, for now at least, she followed Katie over to the side to grab her stick and the training pucks and cones Rob had left out for them.

* * *

"What the fuck was that Campbell?" Katie shouted from across the ice as Naomi's slapshot went wide, riding the boards so far that it gave the other side an icing call. Naomi rolled her eyes as she set her sights back on the puck, which was being carried towards their goal by a smirking Emily. It was Thursday night, the day before their next game, and Naomi and Katie's truce was already waning as they played a mock match against half of the Pirates. Effy and Emily were playing attack for the opposition and they were giving Naomi and the oldest twin a run for their money.  
"Well if you were where you were supposed to be!" Naomi snapped back, tired from all the extra early morning practises she and Katie had managed to fit in before college. They had spent most mornings at the rink before school and they were definitely working better together on the ice for it, but Katie seemed to be going out of her way to avoid her during the rest of the day.

Rob blew his whistle, signalling full time and stepping in to stop the squabble turning in to a full blown argument. "That's it girls! Hit the showers and get a good night's sleep for tomorrow night's game! Katie, Naomi, nice work out there, just keep it up." He nodded at Naomi, as though sympathising with her for having to play nice with his oldest daughter. It was definitely hard work. Given both of them were prone to their tempers the slightest quibble could quickly escalate, but for the most part they had been getting on fine.

"Nice work out there." Sophia complimented as she saddled up to Naomi in the locker room. She was definitely getting the feeling that the other girl was in to her, but she hadn't really figured out a way to let her down gently so she was just trying to ignore her flirting and the way she practically eye-fucked her when she walked in to a room.  
"Thanks, you too." Naomi forced a smile and didn't miss the way Katie's eyes rolled at her. Naomi was still trying to work out whether she was so pissed off about Sophia talking to her because she really was a stalker, or if it was just because Katie herself was jealous of Sophia being so openly in to the blonde. "It was pretty impressive how you intercepted that shot I took in the second period." Her hand lingered on Sophia's arm and she caught Katie glaring daggers at the pair of them as she stuffed her kit in to her bag and stormed out.

"Thanks." Sophia blushed as she tucked her hair back behind her ear. Had Naomi been thinking clearly she would never have led the other girl on just to get a reaction from Katie, but ever since the oldest twin had kissed her she hadn't been able to stop thinking about it; about her. "I was thinking…maybe we could go for a drink after the game-"  
"Sorry Soph, I've got to get going. I'll see you tomorrow!" Naomi had barely heard a word the other girl had said as she packed her own kit away and followed Katie out the door. "Katie, wait!" She caught up to her just as she was slipping out the front door and the other girl stopped dead, staring expectantly at the blonde. Naomi suddenly had no idea what to say to her and she felt herself fumbling over her words. "Uh…I…I was wondering if you wanted to practise in the morning?"

"Uh, no. Not on a game day, need to save my energy you know?"  
"Oh, yeah sure." Naomi rarely hit the ice the same day she had a game, she just wanted an excuse to see the other girl and their morning practises tended to provide it. Katie was different when it was just the two of them; like she wasn't trying so hard to keep up appearances. "Well, I'll see you at college then?"  
"Yeah, see you."

"Katie, can we-"  
"No." The smaller girl stopped in her tracks, with her hand pressed up against the door. She wouldn't even turn around to look at her. "No, we can't ok? We have a game tomorrow and I'm not going to fuck it up again! It was one stupid kiss Naomi, get over it!" She was halfway through the door, and would have kept on walking if Naomi hadn't opened her mouth.  
"Two actually." She replied dryly as she crossed her arms over her chest. Despite how intimidating five feet of Fitch could be, she stood her ground as Katie stormed back in and rounded on her.

"Keep your voice down!" She hissed as she looked over her shoulder, making sure none of their team mates had ventured out of the locker room yet. "Fine, _two _stupid kisses that should never have happened! I'm not gay!"  
"Really?" Naomi quizzed. She closed the distance between them and ducked her head just a little, her lips grazing lightly against the other girl's. She pulled back just as Katie moved to kiss her back. "Well you're definitely_ something._ See you tomorrow Killer." She winked at her, leaving Katie speechless for once as she slipped past her and out the door.

Kieran was waiting for her in his car and she was still smirking as she slipped in to the front seat beside him. "Good practise?" He quizzed just as Naomi's phone went off. It was Katie trying to call her. She rejected the girl, giving the other girl a taste of her own medicine.  
"Great; very informative." She answered with a smile.  
"So are you and the little one getting ok now? What do they call her, Ripper?"  
"Killer." Naomi answered; her attention was elsewhere as she watched the now familiar streets of Bristol pass them by. "And yeah…. I think we're getting somewhere."

Naomi woke up late the next morning, savouring her first real lie in since she'd started her early morning practises with Katie. Judging by the time on her clock she had already missed registration and even if she hurried she'd miss the start of first period. It was only Politics though, and if Kieran was that bothered about her turning up he would have woken her up before leaving for college. She decided to stay in bed a little longer, giving her body the extra rest it obviously needed after so much training. The extra ice time had really paid off though and she was certain they were going to be able to win their game; even if they were playing the Somerset Squaws, one of the tougher teams in the league. A win over the Squaws would help the team forget all about the previous week's loss and would set them up for a good season.

She eventually pulled herself out of bed and climbed in to the shower sometime around mid-morning. She was contemplating whether to even bother going in to college at all when she noticed a text from Katie on her phone:

_**'Where the fuck are you? If you miss this game you're dead Campbell!'**_

She rolled her eyes as she typed up a quick reply reassuring her she was fine and sent it back before heading to her wardrobe to pull some clothes on. She supposed she could go in for her afternoon classes, it was only double English and Josie and her puppets would probably be off on one again anyway. The mad cow had spent an entire hour arguing with one of her puppets in their last lesson. She took her time getting ready and pulled her bike out of the garage. By the time she got to the college it was lunch time and she found the gang in the canteen. Emily smiled at her and greeted her as she took a seat at the table beside her and Effy. Katie barely glanced her way, blatantly ignoring her as she carried on talking to Freddie. She laughed at something he said and her laughter was so fake that it was cringe worthy. "Oh Freds, you are so funny!" Her hand lingered on his shoulder and Naomi felt her gut twisting as she watched the other girl batting her eyelashes at a blushing Freddie. She didn't have long to stew over her jealousy as Sophia appeared beside her.

"Hey Naomi! Where we you this morning? You missed Politics." She helpfully informed the blonde, as though Naomi didn't live with their Politics teacher. She hovered by the table, oblivious to the dirty looks Katie was throwing her way.  
"I slept in." Naomi admitted with a shrug. "Guess I needed it after all the early mornings this week."  
"Oh, cool. Well I was wondering if you wanted to hang out tonight. After-"  
"She already has plans." Effy interrupted the other girl without batting an eyelid. She liked Sophia about as much as she liked Mandy, but Naomi could hardly blame her seeing as both girls had been after her girlfriend at one time or another.  
"Yeah." Katie piped up, doing a double act with her best friend. "We're having a sleepover at Effy's tonight. I mentioned it yesterday, didn't I babes?" It was the first Naomi had heard of it but she played along.  
"Oh, yeah. Can't wait."

"Party at your house then Eff?" Cook grinned as Sophia slipped away.  
"Sorry, no boys allowed, just us girls, right?" Effy shot Katie a conspiratorial smile.  
"Exactly…though maybe we can make an exception for Freddie." The oldest twin wore a sickly sweet smile as she turned her attention back to Freddie, who looked like all of his Christmases had come at once.  
"No. We can't." Effy shot her down straight away. "Tonight's a girl's night."  
"And hopefully we'll have something to celebrate." Emily added. "We need to get some drink in babe."  
"That's ok; Katie said she'll skip with me and come shopping."  
"Did I?" Katie frowned. She'd planned on using their English lesson to go over their tactics for the upcoming game.  
"You did, yesterday, remember babes?"

Naomi snorted in to her coffee as Effy repeated the line Katie had used on her earlier. Katie's eyes narrowed on her before she forced a smile. "Of course I did. We can hit the Tesco and get some shots in."  
"I hope you'll get plenty of _shots _in tonight." Naomi teased.  
"I'm pretty sure I'll get more than you." Katie smirked before she picked up her handbag and slung it over her shoulder. "Come on then Eff. I might even make some of my famous brownies tonight."  
"Hmm, you're in for a treat Naomi." Effy gave the blonde a wink before leaning down for a kiss from Emily.

The second they were out of the canteen Katie turned on the older girl. "What the fuck are you playing at? I was going to get Freddie to walk me home!"  
"You know Freddie's fancied you for ages, you shouldn't be dicking him about." Effy folded her arms across her chest as she scorned the smaller girl.  
"Who says I'm messing him around? I'm sick of dating loser football players, and Freddie's nice!"  
"Freddie's great, but we know this isn't about him. What's going on with you and Campbell?"  
"Nothing's going on with us." Katie snapped, not wanting to admit how worked up she'd been the night before when Naomi had briefly kissed her. She'd been on edge about bumping in to the blonde all morning and had eventually text her to find out where the hell she was when she hadn't turned up for class. "We're friends…not even that. I've only been spending time with her so we're ready for tonight's game!"

"Kay, this is me you're talking to. Not Ems or your mum. So what's going on?"  
"She's been trying to get me to talk about what happened the other night…when we kissed. I told her I'm not gay and it was a mistake…but _she _kissed me last night." Katie admitted with a sigh as she sat in the front of Effy's car.  
"She's clearly in to you, she looked pretty pissed off in there when you were all over Freds."  
"Well I'm not in to her. I'm not gay! I told you kissing her was a mistake!" The younger girl repeated. She sat sulking as Effy just shook her head at her in response.  
"Whatever you say Katie." Effy shrugged again as she put the car in to gear. "You know, you _should_ make your brownies tonight; after all if you kiss a girl on MDMA, it's not gay right? It's just the drugs."


	9. Chapter 9

"You ok?" Naomi quizzed as she found Katie sitting alone in the locker room. Effy and Emily were already changed and warming up on the ice with the rest of the team. Naomi was late in because Kieran couldn't get the car started. She quickly stripped down and started pulling on her pads as Katie carried on rubbing her ankle. She was wearing a support bandage over it and it looked pretty swollen from where Naomi was standing.  
"Fine." Katie grumbled, barely looking up at her. Her ankle had been playing up all week, especially with how hard she had been pushing herself in training. She was staring to worry she'd over done it. The last thing she needed was to blow the game and let the team down again.  
"Looks like it." Naomi commented dryly as she pulled her jersey on. It still felt weird wearing the Pirates' blue instead of her usual yellow and black, but the extra training had helped her bond with the team. "Move over." Taking out a tube of muscle rub from her locker she nudged Katie along the bench as she sat down and took hold of her ankle.

"Hey!"  
"Relax Killer, I'm not trying to feel you up!" Naomi rolled her eyes as she slipped off the support bandage and started massing the other girl's ankle with the pain relief gel. "Just take it easy out there tonight, let me do the leg work. I'll get you the puck and you can get it in the net ok?"  
"Ok." Katie didn't argue for once in her life. She knew she wouldn't be able to fly up and down the ice with her usual speed; she'd have to leave that to her centre. She pulled her leg back from the blonde and put her bandage back on. "I might even let you put a few in the net yourself." She smirked as she pulled her skates on. Naomi laughed as she pulled on her own skates.  
"Deal. Come on then, we've got a game to win." She held out a gloved hand and helped Katie to her feet.

The rink was already starting to fill up as Katie and Naomi hit the ice to warm up. Naomi spotted her mum and Kieran over on the home side and refused to acknowledge them as the older blonde frantically waved at her. She did a couple of warm up laps of the ice and joined the others taking shots on the net. Panda was in good form and blocked a fair few of them.

"Hey Campbell!" The Captain for the other team called the blonde over and she slipped away from Effy and the twins. She was a twenty three year old accountant by day and a hell of a player. Her long raven black hair was tied back and tucked under her helmet and she looked far different from the last time Naomi had seen her; of course that had been in a bar back in Hackney and she'd been in a little black dress, not pads and a black and white jersey.  
"Kelly, hey!" The blonde smiled as the dark haired girl pulled her in for a quick hug.  
"I heard you'd left the Hornets, I didn't know you were a Pirate now!"  
"Yeah, well we moved to Bristol and it was either play for the Pirates or take up knitting." Naomi joked; she looked around self-consciously as she felt the others watching her, Katie in particular.  
"Good to see that talent's not going to waste. We're spending the night in Bristol, why don't we hang out after the game? Loser can buy dinner?" Kelly bit at her lip coyly, clearly remembering where dinner with the younger blonde had led to last time.  
"I'd love to make you buy me dinner, but I have plans tonight."  
"Shame, maybe some other time then?"  
"Sure." Naomi nodded before shaking the captain's hand as they announced the players needed to clear the ice. "Good luck out there."

"Finished with your girlfriend?" Katie snapped as Naomi clambered over the boards to join her team in the player's box.  
"Ex actually." Naomi shot back, instantly silencing the other girl. She felt a little guilty as she watched Katie's expression falter.  
"Whatever." She huffed at the blonde and took a seat on the bench. The fragile truce they had managed to call during the week seemed to be in jeopardy and Naomi was worried about the game. If they were at each other's throats again then they could kiss goodbye to any hope of a win. Swallowing her pride, she slumped down on the bench beside her.

"So I do all the leg work and you put the puck in the net, right?" She had to lean in close for the other girl to hear her over the noise of the crowd and the commentator announcing the changes to the program. Despite the noise she kept her voice low, so as not to alert any of the others to the trouble Katie was having with her ankle.  
"Right." Katie nodded. Her gaze was still fixed on a spot on the ice as she refused to even turn and acknowledge Naomi was sitting beside her. She pulled her helmet on as they got ready to take to the ice and she shoved past Naomi to be first out of the gate, muttering. "Just warn your _girlfriend _to stay out of my way." Naomi rolled her eyes as she pulled her own helmet on and followed her out. She'd make sure to give Kelly a warning to watch out for the oldest twin on the ice; _Killer _was definitely out for blood.

Once the line-up was called and the anthem was out of the way, Naomi was standing facing Kelly for the faceoff in the centre. Katie was off to her left, waiting to receive puck that was poised in the referee's hand. Kelly shot her a wink just before the puck was dropped, and with Katie glaring beside her it was enough to put her off. She lost the faceoff to the other centre and ended up chasing after her all the way to the Pirates' defending zone. Mandy managed to pull off a poke check before the puck could get too close to the goal. Emily picked it up and between the two of them she and Naomi managed to get it back up the ice. Katie was ahead of them waiting to receive the puck, but she was over the line and if Naomi passed the puck in to the attacking zone she'd be offside and it would stop play.

"Offside, Killer!" She called up to her as she tapped the puck, deliberately passing it short so Katie would have to go back in to the neutral zone to pick it up. Once it was on the end of her stick she took the puck further up and managed to sink it in to the net with an impressive slapshot, scoring their opening goal inside of three minutes.  
"Nice catch." She nodded at Naomi as they returned to the centre for the faceoff. "Just try and get the puck this time babes, yeah?" Her tone was light and teasing as she took her place to Naomi's left and the blonde felt a smirk tugging at her lips. The early morning practises had really paid off. She and Katie moved like a single unit on the ice, working together and playing off each other to take them three goals up by the end of the first period. Whatever was happening between them off the ice hadn't been brought on to it with them.

Rob was grinning like a madman as he bounced up and down on the balls of his feet in the locker room. "Nice one girls! Good shooting out there Katie, just watch for that offside! We're up by three, but don't get too cocky. A game could change in an instant! Let's keep focused and win this thing!" He was met by resounding cheers from the girls on the team. They were all pumped up from their performance in the first period and were raring to get back to the game. Katie was as eager as the others, but her ankle was throbbing and she had to discreetly pull some painkillers out of her locker whilst the others were busy discussing the strengths and weaknesses of the other team. Naomi caught her wincing as she swallowed some water from her bottle.

"How are you holding up?"  
"Fine." Katie growled out; though it was from the pain, not any sort of anger towards Naomi. They had found a good rhythm on the ice and nothing put Katie Fitch in a better mood than winning. "I'll be better when we win this thing and I can take these off." She nodded towards her ice-skates with a wry smile. From the pain in her ankle she was pretty sure her foot would be up like a pudding the second she took her skates off. "You're still coming to Effy's tonight, right?" She asked out of nowhere, catching Naomi off guard. She bit her lip as she realised she had a whole night ahead of her of playing nice with Katie. Drugs and alcohol would definitely help.

"Sure. Girl's night, wouldn't miss it." She sipped at her own water, trying to focus on just getting through the rest of the game. She'd wait until later to worry about lasting the night. They only had a few minutes before the second period was due to start. "Come on then Fitch, we've got a game to win." She took a long swig from her water bottle, wishing it was filled with something a little stronger.  
"You fetch, I score?" Katie grinned as she slowly got to her feet. Her ankle was still holding, but she wasn't sure it would last for the whole game.  
"Or something like that." Naomi rolled her eyes at her, though she was biting back a grin of her own. She watched as Katie bit back a hiss as she took a tentative step on her ankle. Walking on a thin metal blade was a lot harder than gliding across ice and Naomi could only imagine how painful it was for Katie to make her way out of the locker room. "Come on champ." She slipped an arm around Katie's waist and the smaller girl nearly jumped out of her skin.

"Fuck are you-"  
"Let's go team! Whooo! Pirates!" She pumped her fist in to the air and her enthusiasm spread like wild fire through the team. The rest of the girls were jumping up and down and shouting at the top of their lungs; completely oblivious to the fact that Katie was leaning on the blonde for support. They made it back to the player's box without anyone noticing the way Katie was gritting her teeth with every other step.  
"Thanks, Campbell; but don't mention it, yeah?"  
"Isn't that supposed to be my line?"  
"I mean it!" Katie shot back seriously. "Dad won't let me play if he thinks my ankle's still bad."  
"Katie, it's just a game. Your health's more important-"  
"It's not just a game!" The oldest twin glared at her like Naomi had just slapped her gran in the face or something. "I'm _good _at this. No, fuck that, I'm _great_ at this! Ok? I'm not smart like Emily. I'm not going to go to uni like she is and get some fantastic job and settle down with someone who fucking adores me! This is all I've got! So don't fuck it up for me Campbell."

Once they were back out on the ice again Katie managed to do a pretty good job of hiding the pain she was in. She started trying to chase the puck more, instead of sticking to their agreement to let Naomi do the leg work. She scored another two goals in the second period along with one apiece by Naomi and Mandy, putting them ahead by five goals to nil. The Pirates were on fire and Katie started getting cocky. She made a play to slam the Squaws' centre against the boards as they both chased the loose puck in the Pirates' defending zone, but Kelly saw what was coming and fell back. Katie ended up being the one hitting the boards first, with the older centre slamming her from behind. She grunted and cursed as she picked herself up off the ground. By the time she was back on her feet Kelly had gotten past the rest of the Pirates and had managed to sink a shot in to the net. "Fuck!" Katie swore. They were still up by four goals, but she knew better than anyone how fast paced the game could be. They had less than four minutes of the second period left and it would be more than enough time for the Squaws to level the score if their centre's goal had rallied them enough.

"Stick to the plan, yeah?" Naomi muttered gruffly as they both took the bench. Rob had called Effy and their second line centre up for the last few minutes to give the other girls some ice time. "Kelly wouldn't have gotten that goal in if you hadn't tried to slam her!"  
"I'm sorry, what exactly were you doing as she was scoring that goal?" Katie snarled. Conceding the goal to Kelly of all people had put her in a foul mood again.  
"I wasn't sitting on my arse." Naomi shot back, biting back a smirk as Katie glared at her. Her lips curled up in to a smile and she couldn't help but laugh as she shook her at the smaller girl. "Just forget about Kelly and focus on scoring some more."  
"Whatever." Katie huffed. There were only a couple of minutes left of the period and Rob wouldn't be calling on her to go back in so she pulled off her helmet and gloves and brushed a few stray strands of hair out of her face. Her cheeks were red from a mixture of the cold temperature and the exertion of being on the ice for so long. With only enough players for two and a half lines Rob had to keep his players on for longer than larger teams would have to. The Squaws had three full lines and were able to rotate their players regularly to stop them from becoming worn out. "And it's not like I'm targeting your little friend. I _always _go for the Centre."

"Don't I know it." Naomi rolled her eyes and Katie shoved her with her shoulder. "I mean it though; the last thing this team needs is you fucking that ankle for good."  
"Like the need me. They've got you, haven't they? Superstar Centre Naomi Campbell!" The oldest twin's voice was dripping with sarcasm, but it couldn't hide her bitterness.  
"Centre is just a position Katie. The only 'C' that makes or breaks a team is that one right there." She pointed to the white patch sewn on to the chest of Katie's jersey. "You're the captain. They need _you._..so just watch that ankle."

By the time they were back on the ice for the last period Katie was finally back in the right frame of mind and they stuck to their original plan of fetch and shoot. With Emily working with them and Mandy and Sophia on defence they didn't let the Squaws get anywhere near Panda and their goal. With only a few minutes of the last period left the other team started to get desperate to narrow down the seven goal difference. Naomi picked herself up off the floor after a particularly rough body check from one of the other team's defenders, the type she was used to receiving from Katie. The oldest twin slapped her on the shoulder as she skated past on her way to the face off. "Get that arse moving, Campbell!" she laughed, her grin spread right across her face. Winning definitely agreed with her.

They lined up for the faceoff and Naomi won possession of the puck, but she had the defender who'd just flattened her right on her tail and she couldn't shake her loose to pass the puck on to anyone. She faked a deke to the left and then went right, slipping past the defender to get some space. It didn't quite go to plan though as she found herself pressed up against the boards with Kelly behind her, chopping at the puck. "Naomi!" She heard Emily calling for the puck and she pushed back against the other team's centre before sending the puck Emily's way. The shot went a little wide, but Emily was quick on her feet and she intercepted it before any of the Squaws could get to it. She took a shot on goal, but their keeper blocked it with her stick. The puck was still in play though and Mandy took a shot on the rebound, taking the goal for herself and giving Emily the assist. That put them on 9-1 up and then Emily managed a goal of her own before the final whistle. Rob was ecstatic at the spectacular win and was practically jumping up and down in the player's box.

The girls started shaking hands before making their way off the ice. Despite the crushing defeat Kelly was still in good spirits as she tugged on Naomi's outstretched hand and pulled her in for a hug. "Changed your mind about tonight?"  
"Sorry, maybe some other time, yeah?" Naomi apologised. Her attention was elsewhere as her eyes landed on Katie. She was shaking hands with the other team's goalkeeper, a gracious smile on her lips and a flush of colour on her cheeks. She looked adorable and Naomi felt something stirring in the pit of her stomach at the sight of her. The idea of a sleepover at Effy's didn't seem so bad anymore.  
"Come on Naomi, you're team just fucked us over; the least you could do is have dinner with me?" Kelly pushed, hoping to win the younger girl over.  
"Sorry Kel, I'll call you!" She tossed over her shoulder as she headed over to join the rest of the team. The older centre shook her head.  
"Yeah. I've heard that before!"

Inside the locker room it was pandemonium. The girls were screaming and shouting, celebrating the win that they should have had in their opening game. When Rob came in he scooped both of his girls up with a face splitting grin. "That was amazing girls! We need more games like that! Katie, Naomi, nice teamwork out there, keep it up! We've got three weeks until our next game and it's going to be a tough one!"  
"Who are we playing?" Naomi asked absentmindedly as she started undoing her laces. Joining the team so late she hadn't really paid much attention to their fixtures.  
"Hornets." Emily answered, and it suddenly felt like someone had sucked all of the air out of the room. She hadn't really thought about facing her old team so soon and the prospect was a little daunting. She felt Katie's eyes on her as she sat beside her on the bench, waiting for her reaction.  
"Oh." Naomi choked out, trying to keep her voice level. "That'll be a tough one; we should keep up the morning practises."  
"Yeah." Katie nodded, the corners of her lips turning up slightly in a smile. "We should definitely keep doing those."

**A/N: Sorry for the wait for an update guys and as ever thanks for reading. I decided to leave the result of the game up to fate when I went to watch my team play the other day and luckily for the Pirates the Warriors won 10-1 ;) **


	10. Chapter 10

"So, are you fucking Campbell tonight then?" Effy asked nonchalantly as she licked the spoon that Katie had just been using on her brownie mix.  
"What? No! Fuck off Effy!" The younger girl snarled as she shoved the baking tray in to the oven a little too forcefully and slammed the door shut. "I've told you-"  
"Whatever." Effy rolled her eyes like she was bored of the conversation already. "That was a good game today. Next one should be tough though. We'll see if a Hornet can really be a Pirate." Effy knew as well as everyone else just how much work Naomi had put in to training for their last game, but she wasn't quite sure the blonde would be ready to face her old team. She thought Katie would share her reservations, but she jumped straight in to defend Naomi.  
"She's a Pirate now and she's going to damn well work her arse off for that next game whether she likes it or not!"  
"With you there to supervise her of course, Captain." Effy shot her a wink just as the kitchen door opened and Emily led Naomi in. She'd gone to meet the other girl at the end of the street so she could find Effy's house ok.

"Naomi! We were just talking about you." Effy grinned as she leant forward on the kitchen counter and wrapped her arms around Emily's waist, pulling her flush against her to kiss her neck. From across the kitchen Katie glared daggers at her best friend. She loved Effy dearly, but some days she could quite happily beat her around the head with the nearest heavy object. She took a discreet step away from the frying pan lying in the kitchen sink so as to avoid tempting fate. "Great game today. All that extra practise obviously paid off."  
"Yeah it was definitely worth it." Naomi agreed, trying to keep her focus on Effy and Emily rather than the older twin. She had changed out of her sweats and was wearing a little black dress that really put the emphasis on _little. _Her hair was loose and curled and the gold hoops in her ears framed her face. She looked like she was dressed up for a night on the town and Naomi felt a little plain in comparison. She'd gone with her usual skinny jeans and a T-shirt ensemble. The only effort she'd really put in to her appearance had been to straighten her hair and put on a little bit of makeup. Emily was dressed in a similar fashion to Naomi though, and Effy just always looked like she was ready for a party, so she didn't feel too out of place. She just had to stop herself from staring at Katie's arse as she bent over to check on her brownies. It was going to be a long night.

"Beer?" Emily offered as she pulled away from Effy long enough to make her way over to the fridge.  
"Forget the beer. Let's hit the hard stuff!" Effy reached in to the cupboard behind her and pulled out a bottle of Tequila.  
"Panda's not even here yet." Emily rolled her eyes as she handed Naomi a beer and took one for herself. She slipped back between Effy's legs, leaning against the bench.  
"Panda's not allowed Tequila, not after the last time." Katie shook her head at the memory of Panda trying to dirty dance on top of the bar of the club they'd been in.  
"Better finish it before she gets here then." Effy challenged with a smirk. If Katie's brownies didn't loosen them all up, then the drink would.  
"I'm in." Naomi shrugged, needing something to take the edge off.

"Me too." Katie fetched the shot glasses from one of the cupboards and lined them up on the bench beside Effy. "What about you Em? Or are you being a pussy?" The younger twin rolled her eyes, but relented and picked up one of the shot glasses. She smiled as Effy slipped an arm around her waist and leant in to pick up a shot glass for herself.  
"That's my girl." She pressed her lips to Emily's cheek, the smell of alcohol already lingering on her breath.  
"Ugh, can you two get a room or something?" Katie sneered as she refilled all of their glasses.  
"Got one. Thanks for reminding me." Effy laughed as she started tugging Emily towards the door.  
"Eff!" Emily giggled, slapping the other girl's hands away. She was saved by a knock on the front door, but she didn't manage to get away to answer it without Effy giving her behind a playful slap.

When she came back in she had Panda with her. Katie discreetly hid the Tequila bottle behind her back. "Alright Effy! Katie! Naomi! Whizzer game we had weren't it?" The blonde greeted them all like an over excited toddler.  
"Let's move this party next door." Effy suggested, already pushing Panda out of the door and towards the living room. Emily had her back and they got the blonde out of the kitchen before she could spot the alcohol. If they gave her anything stronger than an alcopop they'd be propping her up all night.

Naomi hung back in the kitchen with Katie and moved a little closer to the other girl. "Anything I can help with?" She asked as Katie checked on the brownies. The smaller girl looked over her shoulder at the door, as though keeping a look in case the others were about to walk in on them.  
"You can help me finish this?" She put the tequila bottle down on the bench between them with a smirk before going back to the brownies. She pulled the tray out of the oven and sat it on the bench to cool down. Naomi matched her smirk as she fetched the shot glasses and filled them.  
"We planning on training on Monday then?" Naomi asked, trying to sound casual about asking to spent time with the other girl. Katie was like a jack-in-the-box and she never knew what face she'd be wearing when she popped out.  
"Nai, the only plan I have right now is to get so monumentally fucked up that I completely skip Sunday and just wake up on Monday, ok?"  
"Ok." Naomi nodded, biting back a grin as she picked up her shot and they clinked their glasses. Getting fucked up sounded like a good plan.

Katie went back to ignoring her as she plated up the brownies. Naomi filled their glasses again and traded her for a brownie. They were still warm and the chocolate practically melted in her mouth. Effy had been right, they were the best she had ever tasted. The sweet desert was a contrast to the sharp tequila, leaving a strange taste on Naomi's tongue. She tried not to think about the taste of Katie's lips as she finished another shot, but the more she drank the more her thoughts kept going back to kissing the other girl. She followed Katie in to the living room and helped herself to a second brownie before she took the single seat by the door. Effy and Emily were curled up on one of the sofas, with Panda on the other one. Katie took a seat beside Panda with a second brownie of her own.

"I feel weird." Naomi announced after an hour. They'd ordered in pizza and Effy had brought out the vodka, but Naomi didn't feel drunk. She felt the same way she often felt before a big game, completely wired and alert; like she'd been chugging down energy drinks all night and not shots. She was too hot and had to pull her shirt off, leaving her in her tank top. Her skin not only felt like it was on fire, but also like it was vibrating with the beat of the heavy bass music coming through the speakers of Effy's TV; and she had an urge to get up and dance. Panda had already beaten her to it though and was dancing in the middle of the living room. Emily laughed as she pulled away from Effy and got up to join in with Panda's crazy dancing. As Naomi stared at her the youngest twin's hair seemed to have become even more of a vibrant red, making it look like flames were dancing around her head as she flipped her hair around.

"You're high." Effy helpfully informed her as she perched on the arm of the chair that Naomi was still sitting in, though the blonde couldn't work out why she wasn't dancing as she watched Emily and Panda go. Katie joined them and laughed at the sight of Naomi's wide eyes following her every move; apparently Katie's plan to get fucked up was working.  
"But I didn't take-" Naomi stopped as she caught sight of the plate that had previously had the brownies on it. "Fuck."  
"It's just MDMA, go with it." Effy shrugged as she got to her, pulling Naomi along with her to join the others dancing in the middle of the floor. She let go of Naomi's hand in order to take Emily's and the blonde suddenly felt a little lost amongst the girls who had become her friends. She was still finding her place in their group and on the team.

Warms fingers wrapped around her wrist and a smile broke out across her lips as Katie started dancing with her. The smaller girl turned her back on her, but started grinding up against the blonde, driving her to a point of desperation. She wanted to put her hands on the other girl, to touch and kiss every inch of her body; and Katie knew it. She wore a smug smirk as she carried on gyrating against her teammate, knowing exactly what affect her provocative dancing was having on her. Had Panda not gotten in between them at the last minute, Naomi would have quite happily bent her over the coffee table, regardless of the audience they would have had. Effy and Emily pulled her in to dancing with them and being sandwiched between the two beautiful girls, one of which was a mirror image of Katie, wasn't helping her to cool off any.

"I just need some water." She made her excuses as she pulled away from them and skulked off in to the kitchen. She slumped against the sink as she pushed her hair away from her face and sighed. Had she known about the MDMA she would never have taken it. She didn't trust herself around Katie Fitch sober, never mind high on mood altering drugs.

She jumped as she felt a pair of hands find their way to her hips and a warm body pressed against her back. She already felt uncomfortable and overheated, so she turned around to complain about the intrusion in to her personal space, but upon finding the hands on her hips belonged to Katie, her objection died in her throat. The other girl was looking stunning and the warm fuzzy feeling in the pit of Naomi's stomach grew as she stared at Katie's soft full lips, lingering so invitingly close to her own. Their gazes locked for just a second and that single smouldering look was like a bomb going off in Naomi's brain as their lips crushed together.

Naomi's hands tangled themselves in Katie's hair as she pushed the other girl backwards and Katie wrapped her arms around the back of the other girl's neck, pulling her in closer. The backs of Katie's bare legs hit the kitchen table and she found Naomi scooping her up to sit her down on the wooden table top, her hands lingering on the sides of her thighs where her short dress ended. Her skin was soft and warm and had her lips not already been occupied, Naomi would have dipped her to kiss every last bit of her. She planned to do just that, if she could ever pull herself away from Katie's lips.

"Kay, can you bring me some water in too?" Katie pulled away as she heard her twin calling to her from inside the living room. The sound of the music was still pulsating through the walls and it seemed to be in time to Naomi's heart as it pounded against her chest.  
"Y-yeah." Katie replied. Her voice was a little shaky as she pushed Naomi away and hopped down from the table, adjusting her dress with as much dignity as she could muster. She filled a pint glass full of water as Naomi just stared at her, breathing hard and unsure of what to say or do. They had just been all over each other and yet in a heartbeat a switch had been flipped and Katie had once again shut down. "It's just the drugs." Katie dismissed Naomi's unasked question with a flick of her hair. She almost made it to the door before Naomi responded.

Pushing her up against the doorframe from behind, she slipped a hand under Katie's dress. Her fingers caressing the flimsy material of the thong she was wearing and finding a pool of dampness that had nothing to do with the drugs. "Really?" She chuckled in Katie's ear, her breath tickling the other girl's bare neck as she pushed her hair out of the way to kiss the column of her throat. Katie pushed back in to her touch, giving in for just a second before wriggling free. Glaring daggers at the blonde she slipped out of the door and back in to the living room.

Naomi slumped back against the table, where only moments ago she'd had Katie pinned down, and tried to figure out how she'd gotten herself in the mess of fancying Katie '_Killer'_ Fitch. Bracing herself for the rest of the night, Naomi pushed herself back on to her feet, grabbed the Tequila bottle off the bench, and followed Katie back in to the other room. She didn't feel like dancing anymore, so she slumped down on to one of the sofas and drank straight from the bottle in her hand. She was surprised when Katie flopped down next to her, practically lying on top of her as she snatched the bottle out of her hand and helped herself to a drink. The other girl seemed to be flitting between moods and Naomi was having trouble keeping up.

After a few hours the drugs started to wear off and the girls had all spent their excess energy dancing. The five of them were lounging around the living room. Naomi sat on the sofa with the empty tequila bottle beside her and Katie sitting on the floor by her feet. She had found another bottle of something which Naomi suspected was either cheap vodka or really bad Sambuca.

They were all wasted and the subject of sex had inevitably been raised; after Panda had loudly and drunkenly declared that Thomas was a sex god. This had led to Effy commenting on Emily's abilities in bed and earning her a slap from both twins. Though Effy reassured Naomi with a wink that she herself was also amazing in bed.

"I can't be doing with skinny girls…no offence Eff." Naomi replied with as serious an expression as she could manage and Emily snorted in to her beer. Effy shrugged as she sipped at her vodka, an arm wrapped around her giggling girlfriend.  
"There goes your invite to join us."  
"Why not?" Katie ignored Effy's attempts at goading the blonde and looked up at Naomi as she questioned her taste in women.  
"Because." Naomi shrugged, not really wanting to answer, but the other girl kept pushing her for a reason, along with Emily and a curious Panda. Effy just gave her a knowing smile. "Fine! I just prefer my girls with curves, ok?" She blushed as she avoided Katie's eye and swiped the bottle of vodka from her, taking a hearty swig.  
"Something to hold on to." Effy grinned.  
"Exactly!" Naomi laughed, the cheap vodka fuelling her confidence as she caught Katie's eye. "I mean skinny girls…they just look like they'd break with a good fu-"

"Let's play Twister!" Panda interrupted, earning a collective groan from the other girls. She suggested the stupid game every time they had a party.  
"Panda, we're not fucking playing Twister." Effy rolled her eyes, quite happy where she was with Emily lying on top of her. She had no intentions of moving off the settee unless it was to take Emily to bed. Emily's eyes were already starting to close over and Effy didn't think the smaller girl would be able to keep herself awake for much longer. Emily was the lightweight out of the twins; unlike Katie who had been known to drink Cook under the table. She was faring pretty well given how much alcohol she had put away. Emily wasn't holding up quite so well though.  
"I'm going to bed." she sighed in to Effy's neck, already half asleep.  
"I'll come tuck you in." Effy smiled as she got to her feet and helped her girlfriend up, wrapping an arm around the smaller girl's waist to keep her steady.

"That's the last we'll see of those two for tonight." Katie rolled her eyes as she got up off the floor and flopped down on to the sofa beside Naomi.  
"I'm well jealous! I wish Tommo was here, I'm dying for a good shag!" Panda sighed loudly as she stretched out on the armchair by the door.  
"Tell me about it." Katie huffed in agreement. "It's been weeks since I dumped Danny." Katie had never not had a boyfriend since she'd started dating at the age of seven and she'd never gone so long without sex since she'd lost her virginity in a drunken fumble at a house party when she was fifteen.  
"I turned down a sure thing tonight." Naomi grumbled, acutely aware of just how closely Katie was lying next to her. She still felt hot and uncomfortable, but she didn't want the other girl to pull away. She placed her hand on the small of Katie's back, moving her fingers in slow circles and wishing the dress wasn't in her way.

"With your ex? The Squaws' centre?" Panda asked, even more talkative than usual when she was drunk.  
"She's not really an ex. She was more of a friend with benefits." Naomi shrugged. She didn't really do relationships and she and Kelly had only really hooked up a couple of times after their matches.  
"Those are the best kind of friends." Effy smirked as she padded softly back in to the living room. "That's how me and Emily started."  
"Too much information, Stonem." Katie glared as she sipped at her drink, though she knew that her twin had been sleeping with Effy before they'd officially become a couple.  
"What? Everybody loves some no strings attached sex, am I right Naomi?"  
"Just remember that Emily is the only one you're meant to be having sex with now." Katie huffed. Effy was her best friend, but Emily was her little sister and she would defend her to the end.

"Relax Katie; you know Emily's the only one who gets in my bed these days." Effy shot back. "Speaking of which Panda's got my mum's bed as usual and you've got Tony's. I'm sure Naomi won't mind sharing with you. Right, Naomi?"  
"Uh…" Naomi looked like a deer caught in headlights as she looked up from her glass. If she made a big deal out of sharing a bed with Katie in front of Panda then the other girl might pick up on what was going on between them; though Panda was hardly the most likely person to pick up on anything. There was also the distinct possibility that Naomi wouldn't be able to keep her hands to herself if she was going to be sharing a bed with the other girl all night.  
"Just as long as you don't hog the duvet!" Katie sneered, though out of sight of the other two her hand had slipped on to Naomi's leg. It was hard to keep up with the other girl's mood swings, but Katie's intentions were clear as her hand slipped further up Naomi's thigh. "Or you'll be sleeping on the floor!"  
"I'll try my best to behave." Naomi muttered; though she had no intention of letting Katie kick her out of bed.


	11. Chapter 11

**A/N: Sorry it's been like three months since I updated! I've been behind with a few fics, my Skins ones in particular, and I've struggled a bit with the chapter. Not 100% happy with it, but it's finished and hopefully I can get back on track with this fic now I know where I'm going with it.  
**

"Is it just me or is something up with Katie and Naomi? Like, more than usual?" Emily quizzed as she slipped out of her jeans. She giggled as Effy came up behind her and started helping her pull her T-shirt over her head.  
"You know what Katie's like." Effy shrugged off her concern, trying to distract her by kissing her neck. It usually worked, but Emily could be just as stubborn as her sister and she pulled away to face Effy properly.  
"You know something, don't you?" Her eyes narrowed on her girlfriend. She knew her too well to miss what she was doing. Effy and Katie could be as thick as thieves sometimes.

"I know you're the most gorgeous creature I've ever seen." Effy purred as she stepped forward, claiming the smaller girl's lips in another attempt to distract her. The second attempt worked a little better and Emily forgot all about Katie and Naomi, choosing to focus her attention solely on Effy instead. She had no idea about her twin's crush on Naomi, or that Katie had _ever _questioned her sexuality in the slightest. Effy was the only person who knew, or at least she had been. She was pretty sure that Naomi had figured out Katie wasn't all that straight.

"Panda's asleep." Naomi almost jumped as she heard Katie's low murmur in her ear. They were still curled up on the sofa together and Naomi had been dozing off herself before she'd felt Katie shift behind her.  
"Ok." She blinked away the sleep in her eyes as she stretched, unsure why the other girl was giving her updates on Panda.  
"So let's go upstairs." Katie added, like her point should have been obvious.  
"Oh…ok."

Naomi had no idea where Effy's brother's room was, so she let Katie take the lead; she seemed comfortable in that role anyway. They went upstairs and in to a room that quite obviously belonged to a teenage boy. It was tidier than Naomi had expected, though she supposed with Effy's brother away at university it had probably been empty for some time. The first thing her eyes settled on was the big double bed in the middle of the room.

"So how do you want to do this? Top and tail or…" Naomi trailed off as she looked back from the bed towards Katie and she found the other girl unzipping the back of her dress. She let the flimsy fabric drop and pool at her feet. "Fuck." Naomi was lost for words as she gawped at the oldest twin's body. Of course she'd caught glimpses of her body in the locker room, but those didn't compare to the sight of Katie standing completely naked in front of her.

All Katie wore, as she stepped out of the dress, was a confident smirk. She sauntered over to the blonde like a girl who was used to being bold. Her arms wrapped around the blondes' neck as she leant in to kiss her. Naomi's lips felt dry and cracked as she ran her tongue over them, anticipating Katie's lips against her own. The other girl stopped short though, teasing her as her lips lingered close.  
"Fuck. Definitely fuck."

Naomi didn't need any more incentive than that. Closing the distance between them she finally kissed her again, getting what she had been waiting for all night. Her hands went to Katie's bare hips, steadying herself as the smaller girl started pushing her back towards Effy's brother's bed; the alcohol and Katie's special brownies fuelling the attraction that was already between them. Naomi wasn't sure what exactly had led to her falling in to bed with Katie, supposedly straight, Fitch, but she wasn't about to stop to think about it. Thoughts of the other girl had constantly been playing on her mind since they'd first kissed. She had a near naked girl lying on top of her and she wasn't about to look a gift-horse in the mouth.

Her hands snaked around Katie's back to unhook her bra, her lips attacking her exposed breasts the second the material was out of her way. Katie's back arched forward, encouraging Naomi to continue. The blonde moved so that she had Katie lying on her back beneath her, making it easier for her to manoeuvre a hand down to the waistband of her knickers. "Wait!" Katie snapped, her hand latching on to Naomi's wrist with an iron grip.

The blonde bit back a groan of frustration as the smaller girl changed her mind yet again. They were both breathing hard as they pulled away. Katie's particularly ample chest was heaving as she lay on her back, but Naomi was too distracted by the fear in her eyes to notice. The usually sassy and confident teenager looked like a deer caught in headlights as she looked up at her team mate with those big brown eyes of hers.

"What is it?" Naomi asked softly, keeping her frustration out of her voice the best she could. Something had clearly spooked the other girl and she wanted to know what it was so they could stop playing games. She was tired of Katie playing hot and cold with her. She needed to know where she stood once and for all.  
"I…I've never slept with a girl before..." Katie's admission was hardly a shock. It was clear she was struggling with her sexuality and Naomi wasn't all that surprised that she hadn't had sex with another girl. Her first reaction was to laugh, which earned her a scowl from the girl lying beneath her. "Don't laugh at me!" She tried to pull her hand back, but Naomi turned the tables so that she was gripping Katie's wrist instead.

They struggled for a moment as Katie tried to use her free hand to slap her, so the blonde caught hold of that wrist too and pinned both of them above her head. She silenced her protests with her lips and it didn't take long for the smaller girl to start responding. She was the one to deepen the kiss as her tongue slipped past Naomi's lips. They were both panting as they pulled apart. "You don't have to do anything you don't want to do. You don't have to _do _anything." Naomi emphasised her point as she dropped her head down to trail a path of soft kisses down the smaller girl's stomach until she reached the waistband of her knickers. Katie's big brown eyes watched her warily, but she didn't try to stop her this time. For once she was happy to let the other girl take charge.

Naomi had slept with a couple of girls and she was fairly confident in what she was doing. She pulled her shirt off over her head before wriggling out of her jeans. Katie's eyes followed her every movement, before finally settling on her exposed skin. The blonde pulled the duvet up around them to help the other girl feel at ease. She knew how easily the oldest twin could be spooked, so she moved slowly and deliberately as she leant forward to kiss her again. "If you want me to stop I will. You call the shots."  
"I always call the shots." Katie managed a smirk as she kissed her back. She seemed more relaxed after she'd realised Naomi wasn't expecting anything back from her.

Dipping her head, she slowly moved her lips against Katie's, waiting for the other girl to start kissing her back before she let her fingers trace up the inside of the other girl's thigh. She felt Katie stiffen and let out a sharp breath as her fingers first brushed against the sensitive bundle of nerves at her core. "This is just between us, yeah?"  
"Well I wasn't exactly about to call up Cook and invite him over."  
"You know what I mean!" Katie huffed. "No one can find out about this."  
"Ok." Naomi shrugged. With the other girl lying practically naked beneath her she would agree to just about anything. She would think about the consequences later.

When Naomi's eyes cracked open the next morning, her mouth dry and her head pounding, she wasn't all that surprised to find herself lying alone in Effy's brother's bed. She was conscious of the fact that she was still naked and despite being alone in the room, she kept the duvet wrapped around her as she reached over the side of the bed where her clothes had been unceremoniously dumped the night before. She was just pulling on her T-shirt when the door opened and Katie stepped back in the room. She'd changed out of her dress and in to some jogging pants and a T-shirt. Her hair was wet, suggesting she'd been up long enough to shower. She looked wide awake and fresh faced; a complete contrast to how Naomi felt as she tugged on her jeans and used a hand to push her hair back from her face.

Katie didn't say a word about what had gone on between them the night before and the blonde felt more than a little irritated. It wasn't like it hadn't been an enjoyable experience; Katie for one had been making some noises that suggested she had _definitely _enjoyed it. Naomi tried to bite her lip as Katie ran a brush through her hair and tied it back, making no attempt to bring up the fact that they had spent the night together.

"So-" Naomi started, but Katie Fitch shot her straight down with a fierce glare.  
"No." She snapped at her, leaving no room for argument; of course that just made the blonde all the more argumentative.  
"No? That's it, just no? Katie we fucked last night!"  
"It was the MDMA." The smaller girl shrugged, dismissing everything that had happened out right. "I told you last night it was just sex. It was no big deal." Her voice was strained and she was refusing to meet the other girl's gaze as she checked herself in the mirror hanging above the dresser.  
"And what about when you kissed me? What was that? You can blame last night on the drugs, but you can't fucking tell me there's nothing going on between us! I mean Jesus Christ Katie, half the time I want to strangle you, and the other half I want to-"

"Want to what?" Katie turned suddenly, her big brown eyes boring in to the other girl. She was clearly angry, but there was something else there too; something expectant. Feeling bold, Naomi stepped closer to her as she met her gaze.  
"Kiss you." She admitted, her voice coming out as little more than a whisper as her eyes dropped to Katie's full lips. "I just want to fucking kiss you." She stepped closer still, her hand cupping the back of Katie's head as she brought their lips together; she didn't fight her.

"I'm not gay." Katie gasped, even as she was pushing the blonde back towards the bed. Their lips never parted as Naomi sunk down on to the bed and the smaller girl climbed on to her lap.  
"You don't have to label this." Naomi objected. "I want you, you want me. It's that's simple." It was anything but.  
"Who said I want you?" The tiny girl challenged. She took a sharp breath as Naomi's hand found its way between her legs, stirring up the same yearning she'd felt the night before. "Fuck…" She hissed in to the other girl's mouth, biting back a moan as Naomi started rubbing her centre through the thin material of her underwear.

"Katie! Dad's here!" Emily called from somewhere downstairs and the older twin groaned against Naomi's lips.  
"Fuck." She cursed again, dragging herself away from the blonde. "We're going to my gran's." She explained, even though Naomi hadn't asked. "Fucking family Sunday dinner…" She muttered to herself as she shoved her things in to her overnight bag. She was tired and hungover and a little turned on. The last thing she wanted to do was sit down for dinner with her whole family.  
"Do you want to hang out later?" Naomi quizzed, biting her lip uncertainly. She still wasn't sure how to take the other girl and she felt like she was treading on glass around her.

"Hang out? What are we, like six?" Katie scoffed at her, though her tone wasn't quite as hostile as it usually was. "Fine, text me or whatever." She shrugged, not really wanting to make a commitment. The second she slipped out of the room she took a steadying breath. Her head felt like it was going to explode and that wasn't just the hangover or the drugs. She'd slept with a girl. With _Naomi fucking Campbell _of all people! She was terrified that somebody would find out, but at the same time she was elated. She had fucked Naomi; or at least the other girl had fucked her. Katie hadn't really done much. She'd been uncertain about what to do and hadn't wanted to look like a tit in front of the blonde. What was she supposed to do? Ask Emily for some tips? Yeah, that would go down well.

She decided to keep everything to herself, for the time being at least. She would talk to Effy at some point. The other girl was the only one who knew about Katie and her predilection for their blonde centre. She would wait to tell Effy about what had happened until she understood it herself. She didn't know what she wanted, or what she expected from sleeping with Naomi; but she had to admit it had felt pretty damn good. The other girl had _certainly_ known what she was doing.

"Are you ok?" Emily quizzed as she caught sight of her sister coming down the stairs from Tony's bedroom. She looked preoccupied.  
"Fine." Katie answered a little too sharply, making her twin all the more suspicious.  
"Have you been fighting with Naomi again? Can't you just two just fucking kiss and make up already?"  
"How about you mind your own business!" Katie snapped, shoving past her with a body check that she would have usually kept for rival players.

The Fitch dinner was a gruelling affair for both twins, who were nursing their own hangovers. "That was some game last night kiddo, you and Campbell nailed it! You went in there hard and you got the job done!" Rob insisted on going on and on about the game and the more he talked about Naomi, the more Katie just wanted to melt in to her chair and disappear. By the time they got on to dessert she was desperate to get out of her gran's house.

"Hey Dad, is it ok if I skip pudding? I promised Naomi we could go over the game and talk about our training for the next game." She knew there were very few reasons in the world that would let her get away with leaving her gran's house early, but training was one of them. Her mum didn't look too happy about it, but that's why Katie had asked her dad. She knew exactly how to play him. Within ten minutes she was in a taxi and on her way to Campbell's house. When she'd told her dad she wanted to go see Naomi she'd been lying. She'd just wanted to go home and climb in to bed, but once she was actually sitting in the taxi she gave the driver Naomi's address instead of her own. She hadn't called ahead and she started to get doubts as she paid the cab driver and walked up the short garden path to Naomi's front door. Forcing her nerve, she knocked twice and waited for someone to answer.

She was met by the older blonde as Gina Campbell answered the front door. "Hello, which one are you?" Gina's smile never wavered as Katie glared at her.  
"Katie." She answered, unimpressed by the woman's greeting.  
"Oh, Killer! Lovely! Come on in." She stepped aside and ushered the oldest twin inside. "Naomi's in her room, just go on up." She wandered back in to the living room, leaving Katie to see to herself. She made her way upstairs and found her way to Naomi's room. When she opened the door she found the room in near darkness. The curtains were drawn over and the only light in the room was coming from a small lamp on the desk. Naomi was lying on top of her bed, a book draped over her chest and her eyes closed over.

Katie should have walked back out and left her to sleep, but instead she went in to the room, quietly closing the door behind her. She slipped off her shoes and padded over to the bed. Naomi's eyes shot open as she felt the bed shifting beside her. "Katie?" She mumbled, frowning as she blinked a few times to make sure she wasn't dreaming. The other girl lay down on the bed beside her, resting her head on her arm and biting her lip as she faced the blonde.

"I think I might be gay." Katie's voice was little more than a whisper as she buried her face in Naomi's pillow. She had never said those words out loud, not even to Effy. She had known she was attracted to women, one in particular, but she had never admitted that she could be anything other than straight.  
"Ok." Naomi could see she was struggling and she didn't want to scare her off. She shifted a little closer, taking one of Katie's hands in her own and stroking the back of it with her thumb.  
"I like girls…I like you." Katie admitted with a little laugh that turned in to a sob. "That's why I'm such a bitch…because I'm terrified of people finding out."

"Katie…" Naomi wasn't sure what to say to the tiny girl who had just climbed in to her bed. She didn't know how to take her half the time, but her anxiety over her sexuality would go a long way to explaining her behaviour. "It's nobody's business what you are. If you don't want anyone to know then they don't have to…and for its worth, I like you too; when you're not being a bitch that is." She chuckled as Katie tried to shove her shoulder. She caught her wrist and pulled her in closer so that she was lying in front of Naomi, with her back to the blonde and Naomi's arms wrapped around her waist, holding on to her.  
"Stay." She muttered, her eyes already closing over again. It had been a long weekend and as much as she wanted to know exactly where she stood with the other girl, she could wait a little longer.


End file.
